Write this down because it is important. Most answers to the things you question lie within you. This is something I would share with someone younger. It is a timeless message like something I’d hope to find in a bottle. There are things I wish someone had shared with my younger self too.
I wish someone would have told me 10 years ago how challenging it is to live with a new spouse after living on your own for twenty plus years. Having a roommate is no comparison to having a spouse. Roommates don’t share a tube of toothpaste. My spouse and I no longer do. Who knew having someone squeeze the tube of toothpaste in the center could be so disconcerting? One of the biggest adjustments I had to make was reintroducing television watching into my lifestyle. I had a television when I met my husband but refused to pay the expense of cable service so I had both a VCR and DVD player to watch movies when the mood struck me. Within just a few weeks of dating he had slapped a set of rabbit ears (yeah, the antennae) on my television and life has never been the same.
I wish someone would have told me 5 years ago that my start up business take time to show a profit. It’s one things to cover your expenses, it’s a completely different matter to actually show a profit. To show a profit very specific actions have to take place repeatedly. Doing something once, deeming it a failure and never tweaking the process will not result in a profit. Much like marriage, you will have to fall in love with your business over and over again.
I wish someone would have told me even one year ago how much fun I would be having rediscovering my creative genius. I didn’t realize what I was missing until I started to do creative things such as Swedish weaving, painting, and knitting/crocheting. When I was young I loved all things arts and crafts. You could say I was a bit artsy fartsy. I did sand painting, oil painting, photography, dabbled with pastels, chalk and sketching. I even spent one summer sewing, who knew one-piece jumpers where so much fun to make and wear? I also made beaded jewelry.
I Would Write This Down
If I could go back in time with a nugget of knowledge that I have come to realize now about these same three things I wish someone had told me, I would write this down:
- Living alone can make you selfish in ways you never knew would be categorized as such. Choose your battles wisely.
- You cannot stop before you actually get started. You will need to see things through to completion and make adjustments along the way.
- There is nothing wrong with being creative. Being creative is messy and that’s okay. Embrace it, love it, and live it.
What would you share with someone younger than yourself? What do you wish someone had shared with you 10 or 5 or even one year ago?
