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See the world and be active while you're still unattached and aren't yet tied down to a desk.
Education is good, but don't forget to enjoy life outside of academia. I've seen too many relatives fall into that trap.
@subwaysandwich wrote:
I've completed a college education, and currently planning for more education. It was of recent that I started my credit journey, and from all the help I received here, I've been keeping myFICO score in check. What other things should I invest my time in or look into? I'm going to the gym and eating more healthy and it would be awesome if we could come up with a huge list that everyone can refer to and attain goals they haven't currently completed.
This should be moved to the smorgasboard topic since its not about credit cards. That being said start a retirement account and put a little in each month. In planning for more education try to avoid taking out student loans if you can. I'm still in major debt due to my graduate loans and its taking forever to get out from under them due to the huge amount of interest they charge. If you can get a job where your employer will pay for your graduate studies even better. If you enjoy travel then I would recommend seeing the world. You can travel on student discounts until your like 25 or 26 in Europe and other parts of the world (get a railpass, stay in hostels, meet people from all over the world). Trust me if your into adventure this is something you should strongly consider doing in your 20s as the experiences will shape your life. Network in the field of work you would like to go into. Work is about relationships and doors will only be opened up if you go out there and meet people and get to know them. Maybe find a mentor in your field who can give you advice on laying out a career path. It becomes more difficult later in life to change directions (its possible but a lot harder). Best piece of advice I can give is don't waste your 20s on frivolous things. They will be gone before you know it.
@red259 wrote:
@subwaysandwich wrote:
I've completed a college education, and currently planning for more education. It was of recent that I started my credit journey, and from all the help I received here, I've been keeping myFICO score in check. What other things should I invest my time in or look into? I'm going to the gym and eating more healthy and it would be awesome if we could come up with a huge list that everyone can refer to and attain goals they haven't currently completed.This should be moved to the smorgasboard topic since its not about credit cards. That being said start a retirement account and put a little in each month. In planning for more education try to avoid taking out student loans if you can. I'm still in major debt due to my graduate loans and its taking forever to get out from under them due to the huge amount of interest they charge. If you can get a job where your employer will pay for your graduate studies even better. If you enjoy travel then I would recommend seeing the world. You can travel on student discounts until your like 25 or 26 in Europe and other parts of the world (get a railpass, stay in hostels, meet people from all over the world). Trust me if your into adventure this is something you should strongly consider doing in your 20s as the experiences will shape your life. Network in the field of work you would like to go into. Work is about relationships and doors will only be opened up if you go out there and meet people and get to know them. Maybe find a mentor in your field who can give you advice on laying out a career path. It becomes more difficult later in life to change directions (its possible but a lot harder). Best piece of advice I can give is don't waste your 20s on frivolous things. They will be gone before you know it.
i sugggested doing the same , but my post didn't post when it got moved lol. Do at least employee match 401k and try to max out roth ira and then you can have fun traveling or whatever you like to do :-)
Get an education, get a job, save and invest - Charles Schwab
Here's something you should not do: do illigal drugs and activities or even legal ones even though they ma be legal in certain states IF your career path is in law enforcement, or the intelligence community such as CIA, they vet heavily for such activity.
I lived with two girls for about a year when I was in my 20's. Was the best of times and the worst of times, but sure was fun.
23 so pretty much have the same thoughts go through my head daily:
-retirement acct: probably the unsexiest thing you can do in your 20's, but you'll thank yourself later (*fingers crossed*). It's not about being able to put in a ton of money and max out your IRA every year, though it's awesome if you can, but it's all about building the right habits early.
-Travel: My plan is 6 continents by 26. Traveling in your 20's is much different than traveling when you're 30 with a family and settled in a career.
-Push yourself to learn things that you haven't: Could be cooking, mastering the art of small talk, basic things like basic car maintenance (like if **bleep** goes down, you know enough to identify what could possibly be wrong. it's sad to see someone who doesn't even know how to check oil and fluid levels), tying a tie, etc. ArtofManliness blog has a lot of pretty cool articles on things that you wish you knew but never took the time to learn.
-Read. Another useful habit. Even a 5-10min scan of WallStreet Journal daily makes you much more aware of the world. Jump into those novels you "never had the time to," because your life probably won't get less busy. I personally just follow like 3-4 different blogs. Takes about 10 minutes of my day, but gives me a good pulse of what's going on in the world around me and I think I'm better for it.
-In general, expose yourself to new experiences: seeing new places, meeting new people, trying new things (not going to encourage drug use, but i do have a couple friends that have come up with some brilliant self-revelations through its use; if the strong urge is there, just make sure you do it with people who can take care of you and try to do so in a controlled setting. highly recommend against if you have an addictive personality).
-Other things I've done in my 20's, but probably isn't crucial to the 20's experience: move to a new place where you don't know people, network and befriend people you normally wouldn't, move into the city (it's a much different vibe and cool to live there even if it's just for 6 months or so) do things that scare the **bleep** you but aren't completely reckless (i did a Tough Mudder last year and don't really know how to swim, but I did it with a group of friends that I knew got my back), live with roommates (props to Chris123nTx: lived with one girl and one guy and can definitely attest to the worst of times part; can't imagine if I lived with 2 whose personalities were similar to the one I had. def fun though.)
At the end of the day, I've realized that even though I'm largely independent and have done a lot of growing up since school, I'm still in my early 20's and I'm at that stage where we can still take risks. Not saying go completely stupid and outright irresponsible, but you're still at the point where (most of) the mistakes you make now will only affect you and are still easily irreversible.
Traveling eh? What if I skipped that and got an entry level job in my field of choice with few vacation days? At 23 there is plenty of time, but I can't see leaving this job for travel being a good idea(though I had a coworker insist I travel as well).
@flawesome wrote:Traveling eh? What if I skipped that and got an entry level job in my field of choice with few vacation days? At 23 there is plenty of time, but I can't see leaving this job for travel being a good idea(though I had a coworker insist I travel as well).
Depending on your job they may give you limited vacation time, but maybe they can defer your start date a month or two? The type of travel I am talking about is going for a month or two at least and just bumming around europe/south america/asia wherever. My first time abroad was for 2 1/2 months, which I did as part of a summer session in graduate school. You can see a lot of different countries and get a good international view point. You have your whole life to work.
@red259 wrote:
@flawesome wrote:Traveling eh? What if I skipped that and got an entry level job in my field of choice with few vacation days? At 23 there is plenty of time, but I can't see leaving this job for travel being a good idea(though I had a coworker insist I travel as well).
Depending on your job they may give you limited vacation time, but maybe they can defer your start date a month or two? The type of travel I am talking about is going for a month or two at least and just bumming around europe/south america/asia wherever. My first time abroad was for 2 1/2 months, which I did as part of a summer session in graduate school. You can see a lot of different countries and get a good international view point. You have your whole life to work.
+1 I have visited about 9 different countries: Mexico 3 times, France, Spain, Morocco, Panama, Costa Rica, Bermuda, Jamaica, and Dominican Republic which translates to 2 other continents. And did this all before the age of 18. Travel now while your young because it will just be more difficult later in life