8 Uncomfortable Truths About Life That Will Change How You View Your Future
Maturity doesn't come from aging, it comes from experiencing life
You have to put effort into learning the constant lessons life is always teaching us and turn them into manuals for others so they do not know what to do.
My 8 impactful lessons that may help others who have walked down a similar path as I have.
People Will Come and Go Like the Four Seasons
I have met many people throughout my very fast life.
We have become friends for a reason and the friendships seemed seamless.
I have met people who shared the same goals, had the same ideologies, had the same personality types, and had the same hobbies.
In the beginning, it felt like some of these people I met would be around forever.
As I got older, life took everyone down their unique path. These paths will cause friendships to become more challenging. The friendships with others were no longer a priority for them.
Along the different paths of life, the trials and tribulations of life have become a priority instead of friendships and people fade away until someone’s funeral. Don’t take this personally.
Simply create a purpose for yourself in life. Make sure the purpose is bigger than yourself so it will keep you focused. It won’t stop the loneliness of the revolving door of people but it will help guide you in those lonely times.
Learn a Skill to Pay the Bills
The only thing I learned from school is how fast I can memorize things to pass my tests.
Throughout my school and college years, I took many classes and subjects. These subjects made me a jack of trades and a master at nothing.
As I got older, I was left where most people without any skills go, in the abyss of the general skills job market.
These job markets usually include jobs that most people hate such as customer service jobs. There is a reason many of these types of jobs do not require a degree.
People with general skills have issues acquiring resources, money, and jobs due to not having a particular skill they can monetize.
There is no time to dwell on the past anymore, so don’t worry about it because it is never too late to learn a new skill.
The key here is self-mastery in one area. What you value like money, passion, and enjoyability will determine what skill you will master.
It won’t be easy because you will have to sacrifice time to develop your skill but it will possibly save your life in the future.
You Can’t Escape the Pain
You are going to feel pain at a young age and it probably shouldn’t be fair to have to go through adversity at such a young age.
You are going to experience things that you can’t control and it will cause you great pain.
As you get older, you will learn to deal with the pain by not dealing with the pain.
People become a masters at dealing with adversity unknowingly using stoic practices.
These stoic practices will become a survival kit when life gives us pain that some may not be able to process emotionally right away.
It’s okay to use these tactics but it will come with a price. We do what we have to do to survive.
As we get older we will understand these coping mechanisms have their place but too much of it causes delayed emotional pain.
The delayed emotional pain causes trauma that you didn’t deal with. As you get older, learn how to deal with adversity in healthier ways.
If you have to cry, pout, get angry, or get frustrated, let it out. The important thing is to feel it, unlike in the past.
When you feel these emotions, you can work through them faster instead of burying them with stoicism.
Take Care of Your Body
The older you get, you start to see who took care of themselves.
This is one thing I did well.
I started exercising at a young age.
Ever since I secretly discovered “Bodies In Motion With Gilad” on ESPN at thirteen years old, fitness has always been a staple in my life.
From high school as an athlete, all the way through my twenties and thirties, I exercised as if it were my job.
I met a lot of older people with serious health problems and they all gave me the same advice.
They all told me to take care of my body so I don’t end up like them when I am older. They all told me that they wished they had taken better care of their body when they were younger.
Getting back to your old peak physical shape will keep you in the game of life as long as you continue to take care of yourself and control the things you can control.
Staying in shape is more than just having abs of steel, it is about vitality, longevity, and staying in the game of life as long as possible.
Increase Your Financial I.Q.
Financial I.Q. is passed down from generation to generation whether you know it or not.
Everyone who helped your development as a young person did the best they could with what they had.
There is a saying that goes, “You don’t know what you don’t know.”
My guardians only taught me what they knew. Unfortunately for me, I was extremely observant. I noticed things like why only a particular group of people get to live in nice neighborhoods, get certain jobs, go to certain schools, or drive certain cars.
What do they have that the average person doesn’t have? At the time, I didn't understand and I was in victim mode.
None of that was my fault.
As I got older, I understood that these individuals have a financial acumen that I was never taught.
Now it is my fault because I am aware of what separates the haves from the have-nots.
Realize that financial acumen goes well beyond knowing how to balance an outdated checkbook.
Read books about businesses, stocks, success stories, and your cultural history to increase your understanding of finances. But most importantly, hang around others who have a higher financial acumen than you do.
If Your An Introvert, Embrace It
Embrace the side requires solitude and clarity.
People attempted to make me feel crazy because I didn't do what the popular consensus did.
As a dominant introvert, I was an independent thinker and this made me question just about everything.
I didn't just go along with the popular thought process. This kind of thinking got me criticized by others and even judged.
Writing became my way out of all the confusion.
Writing can become your career, your gift, and your outlet to clearly articulate your thoughts in the world.
The Grass Isn't Greener On the Other Side
Social media has distorted our perception of reality.
TV and movies used to do this until social media hit mainstream society. At least with media, we knew it wasn't real even though our brains did not say so. Our brains are constantly conditioned to think that the images we see on social media are real.
As a person who lives their life semi-nomadically, I often see the comparisons of living a nomadic life traveling the world, living the 9-5 life staying put in one location, and starting a family.
Both lifestyles have people who embellish them on social media giving you the illusion that one is better than the other or giving you the fear of missing out on something.
You see all of the glamourous travel highlights and the beautiful weddings and baby announcements and you feel like their life is better than yours.
Here is what you don't see:
You don't see the problems of families behind the scenes
You don't see financial issues piling up like child expenses, mortgages, or car payments.
You don't see how depression and loneliness sets in on people who constantly travel
You don't see nomads who struggle to reenter society in the 9-5 life after spending years in another country
There isn't a such thing as the perfect path in life. As long as you continue to compare your life with someone else's, you will always feel like you are missing out.
Always take care of your grass because no matter what path you take, you will always have to step into s**t along the way.
Loneliness Comes For Everyone
People think being in a relationship or being surrounded by people will prevent loneliness.
This myth has put a lot of people in toxic relationships.
The thing about loneliness is that it is temporary and it is a state of mind. These two factors are always neglected when horrible decisions are made during this mindset.
Contrary to popular belief, being lonely isn't someone who is single with no friends or family like the consensus population thinks, it comes in many forms.
The many forms of loneliness:
The obvious single person wishing for companionship
Someone mourning the death of a loved one feels like nobody can relate
A person going through a divorce
A parent who's kids have left the nest to go to college
The person who feels fake among superficial friends
Humans need human connection like fish need water. This is why people do anything to not feel loneliness even if it is harmful to them.
You can't avoid loneliness no matter what phase in life you are in because it comes for us all. Live an abundant life without fearing loneliness because it is a normal cycle of life.
There is no path until you walk it
-Antonio Machado
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