Asking what I should do while I'm still young.

[Teadrinker11]

I'm 26 and conscious that while I'm getting older, I'm still somewhat young ish and from wasting so many previous years want to do what kind of things I should be doing either for fun or for insurance to avoid regret while I'm older. What do you think? What kind of things should I be doing while I'm still somewhat young?

I know everyone is saying travel but travel is something you can do throughout your life. You need to invest in your earning potential so you can carry on travelling, own a home and enjoy the fun things in life.
If you haven’t got the career you want then prioritise that.

Go to art galleries and different concerts. Listen to music you aren't familiar with. You won't like all of the things you see or hear, but many things you see will lift your soul.Go to the theatre, see West end shows, watch films at the cinema. Go alone if no one else is free.
Try different hair styles, just because you can. Strip down to nothing and stand in front of a full length mirror. Ignore all the things your mum (in my case) has told you that you can't wear,shouldn't wear,don't have the legs for, have boobs too big or too small for. Take a proper look at yourself. If you don't like your wobbly bits now is the time to firm them up. It's so much easier now than post 50. Take all your clothes out of your wardrobe and try different combinations. Do the clothes you have make the best of your assets. Look at pinterest for different styles, different ways to put things together. It will show you how to put together a lot of outfits from a small number if key things. It will save you a fortune which you can spend on a weekend away or an experience.
Dont settle for someone you can live with. Choose someone you can't live without.
Say yes to things . It might be the start of something amazing.
Change jobs if your current one is not for you.
Go back to uni or go to uni in the first place.
If you don't love where you live and the life you are living ,change it.

Everything!

Do a series of back flips across a park.

Don't buy a house yet, buy some land with either potential small holding status or residential.

If you own a small holding you can build an appropriate house to service the land.

I do wish someone had said this to me in my youth.

Def put money into a good pension scheme, be careful of charges outstripping profits though....

Live lightly - ie don't buy stuff, as you then have to carry it with you!

Visit as many places in your hone country as possible. It surprises me how many lovely places are on our doorstep!

Do your studying now. It gets harder to find time as you get older...

Enjoy your youth x

Yup pension, it’s one of my big regrets, wear sunscreen as well EVERYDAY and floss, keep up with dental appointments.

I moved abroad in my 30’s tbh once you have it becomes a bit samey, supermarket is a supermarket in any country tbh. BUT I would have always wondered if I hadn’t. Spontaneous travel is a must, it’s pretty hard with kids to do that, cheap deals term time (I miss that soooooo much).

Agree with the sport suggestion, it’s easier when you are young than trying to get started when you are older. Professional qualifications.

Get a tefl qualification and teach abroad. You earn money meet people and see the world

Pay a lot in to your pension, have savings for a rainy day, go travelling if you haven’t already.

DH and I went travelling for four months aged 29 - it was a brilliant decision.

You are young - you’re just starting late youth and you’ve got another 10 years of that. Late 20s early 30s is a great life stage I think -

Anyway

Top line - work out what you want from life and then work out how to get it. It sounds obvious but so many people drift. It’s fine that your wants will change, but aim to know what you are after in different phases of your life - that way, whatever choice you are making, you can ask yourself - od this taking me where I want to go or not?

The other topline - you have to work at being happy. So work out what you need to make you happy,

Pension - start one, even if it’s a tenner a month - just get into the habit of it, and every time you get a raise increase the amount. Starting young makes SUCH a difference.

Have you got a decent career? If not try and sort that by the time you are 30. Something that pays well and you enjoy is a gift throughout life.

If you want to travel do. It’s harder to do as you get older and it makes such a difference to your perception of life. Same principle as a pension, put some money away every week. It doesn’t have to fight with your career - you can wangle a trip a year. If it appeals spending a couple years working abroad is a great idea, and that can be a career boost too.

Get into the habit of experiencing new things - travel, food, new hobbies, people, exercise, culture - just keep mixing it up.

Remember when you pick your partner.. you are picking a partner. Will they do half the heavy lifting at home and with the kids? do your strengths and weaknesses compliment each other? Do you like each other, as well as love and fancy each other? Behind virtually every successful and happy woman with kids is a partner who takes an equal share of the grunt work.

If you really want kids, plan them by your middle 30s.

Learn to manage your money and how investments work, start with a pension and go from there.

Don’t give up your career when you have kids. Take it down a notch by all means, but hold onto it.

Get into the habit of exercise early. If you ever get a bit fat, tackle it fairly quickly,

Hold onto your friends. But practice being your own best mate.

Travel, go to museums, see stuff, speak to people, read books, soak in as much life as you can.

The advice to turn you into a financial stable human is good, but I don’t regret the care free days. The life experience is good too.

Have children… It’s so much fun and way more enjoyable when you have energy than when you’re old and exhausted!

Work abroad,save money,budget but have fun.Look after you body,don’t smoke do drugs or excess alcohol.Exercise and be a healthy weight.Eat a healthy diet,do not skip meals.Drink loads of water your skin will thank you.Use sunscreen daily.If you have a good career you will be independent for life.Choose partners with care.Have fun.

@Thewindwhispers

Have children… It’s so much fun and way more enjoyable when you have energy than when you’re old and exhausted!

And you will be young when they have children and you will have the energy to be a fabulous granny.

@AngelinaFibres

Go to art galleries and different concerts. Listen to music you aren't familiar with. You won't like all of the things you see or hear, but many things you see will lift your soul.Go to the theatre, see West end shows, watch films at the cinema. Go alone if no one else is free. Try different hair styles, just because you can. Strip down to nothing and stand in front of a full length mirror. Ignore all the things your mum (in my case) has told you that you can't wear,shouldn't wear,don't have the legs for, have boobs too big or too small for. Take a proper look at yourself. If you don't like your wobbly bits now is the time to firm them up. It's so much easier now than post 50. Take all your clothes out of your wardrobe and try different combinations. Do the clothes you have make the best of your assets. Look at pinterest for different styles, different ways to put things together. It will show you how to put together a lot of outfits from a small number if key things. It will save you a fortune which you can spend on a weekend away or an experience. Dont settle for someone you can live with. Choose someone you can't live without. Say yes to things . It might be the start of something amazing. Change jobs if your current one is not for you. Go back to uni or go to uni in the first place. If you don't love where you live and the life you are living ,change it.

I like this advice but tbh, I did all of this at 50+ not in my twenties and it felt every bit as good. You can do this stuff any time.

I think your twenties is for stuff you are better off doing before you have commitments. If you want to risk a creative career, or travel the world with a backpack etc - do it now.

Pension and travel.

Moisturise your neck!
Find what you love for exercise.
Travel and/or work abroad.

Stay out late and sleep in these are things at a certain age you just can't do anymore. Don't get a pet until you are completely settled in life. Babies are cute if you have them at 25 or 35 so don't rush. If you want a tattoo or irreconcilable do it. Find a hobby and stick to it. Build friendships you never know what's around the corner. And then of course travel and all the sensible things like pensions etc

Lose weight
Have a baby
Move to Dubai for a bit
Start a good pension
Save a set amount each month
Start a sideline
Do long haul travel
Go on dates
Get married
Enjoy time with friends
Leave jobs you don't love
Move to a city or town with good entertainment and social life

Send yourself forwards to being a grandma what kind of stories you want to tell your young grandkids. Do you want to tell them granny got a good job and worked hard all her life, or that Gran booked a flight to somewhere with a funny sounding name and ended up learning archery from a samurai, had a passionate love affair then left in the middle of the night because there was a train to somewhere and only one ticket left?

NB, if you do the latter, get jabs beforehand, check on the political security of the exotic destination and wear sunscreen religiously.

Don't buy a house by yourself because you feel you have to
Don't get pets until you are living with a life partner
Plan a budget with lots of fun money as well as sensible money.

Have babies

Have (safe) sex with as many pretty young things as you can.

Work abroad.

Travel.

Get in shape and make exercise a habit.

And yes, boringly, pension.

Do whatever makes you happy.

Don’t care what other think.

If I was I my twenties again I would save more, travel more and worry less.

Travel! It's so much harder once you have kids.

And get on the property ladder or start a pension - easier now while you don't have kids as others have said

pension
always wear sunscreen