As We Grow Older

It is inevitable whether we like it or not that as we grow older, we find ourselves learning a few things that we did not know or realize when we were young.  It does not take a college degree to learn these life lessons and in some cases a college degree could prevent you from learning these lessons sooner.

Here are the lessons that I have learned:

First - DON'T TRUST ANYONE

This may seem like it is fundamentally flawed in logic, but I assure you it is true.  You should not trust your parents, your spouse(s), your children, your friends, your employers, your minister/priest, your political leaders, the judicial systems, local businesses, and especially the government.

Money and Greed are the foundation of this as well as the fact that everyone lies and they must continue lying to protect the first lie.  No one is honest anymore, as they are more concerned about SELF than others.

Second - YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT YOU DO

Throughout my entire life, I have heard others, including myself, blaming someone else for the choices and mistakes that we made...  and, that is simply wrong.  Someone may make us mad so much so that we seek revenge, but the other person did not make us seek revenge, we made that choice ourselves.

Third - WE DON'T ALWAYS LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES

I remember people telling me over and over again not to worry about making mistakes because I will learn from them and end up becoming better than I was before making that mistake.  That is simply not true.  We are not always better and we do not always learn as many of us make the same mistake over and over again.  See #1

Fourth - DON'T BECOME WHAT OTHER WANT YOU TO BECOME

All too often, I see both males and females, becoming what their parents wanted them to become and then becoming what their spouses wanted them to become, and worst of all becoming what their employers or religious leaders wanted them to become.  They were miserable all their lives, because they failed to pursue what they wanted to become.

There are all sorts of psychological issues surrounding why people do this and they are different for each person, so the quicker you understand this and can make changes, the better off you will be.

Fifth - START PLANNING FOR RETIREMENT AFTER HIGH SCHOOL

One of the flaws of our K-12 education system and mainly in high school, is the fact that we do not prepare students for LIFE...  giving them the financial skills or the technical skills that they will need to maintain their homes, especially in the area of retirement planning.

If given the knowledge and skills, a high school graduate could easily retire on $500,000 to $1,000,000 at the age of 58 without going to college or even acquiring technical skills as a blue collar worker.   All that is needed is saving $2.50 each day.