Rounding out your 20s and think that your checklist should consist of wild and mad adventures like skydiving and bungee jumping? Well, sure, if you really want — but that’s not all that you should put on your to-do list. To truly finish out your decade on the best foot possible, take a deep breath and start thinking about what you really want to get out of life and what steps you can take to get there. Here are 14 things you should do before you turn 30:
- Break up with anyone you don’t envision spending your life with. As we all know, relationships take a lot of time. So why are you giving your most precious resource, your time, to someone who has an expiration date? It’s easy to get comfortable in a “good enough” situation, but you deserve better. Take a step back and really evaluate your relationship goals. Consider breaking up with him if you know he’s just not right for you.
- Quit a job that you don’t like. The same logic about giving away your precious time applies here, too. We spend so much of our lives at work. Don’t get stuck in a job that makes you miserable.
- Figure out how to cook one meal very well. Getting dinner delivered to your door or picking it up at Whole Foods is cute when you’re in your twenties, but as you approach your next decade you should figure out how to properly host. That includes making dinner, and I don’t mean the kind you can buy.
- Learn how to hold a baby and change a diaper. It doesn’t matter if you don’t want kids. Somewhere, at some point, someone you know and love is going to have a baby. And they’re going to love you forever when you can help them with the basics.
- Take a class on something you’re terrible at. Don’t quite understand computers? Learn the basics of coding. Don’t have any artistic inclinations? Take a painting class. While it’s nice to work on something you’re good at, it’s also nice to fill in the gaps of your knowledge so you don’t feel like there’s an entire subject that you’re totally clueless about.
- Understand the basics of tax laws and investments. Do you know the difference between a Roth and a traditional IRA? You should. There are vast resources online to do your research, or you can call your bank and see if they offer free basic advising services. Many of them do.
- Learn a second language (and actually use it). Did you take four years of Spanish in high school but still have trouble getting past “hola”? It’s not too late for you. Learning languages is easier when you’re younger, so take advantage of that. And don’t be embarrassed to use it!
- Do something that makes you uncomfortable.Hate singing? Try karaoke. By pushing your boundaries, you’ll realize that the only thing worse than failure is not trying at all.
- Learn how to drive a car in manual. One day, you might have to. And you don’t want that to be the day you learn.
- Buy yourself a good piece of jewelry. Whether or not you’ve got a man in your life, sometimes it’s just extra satisfying to splurge on something for yourself with your own hard-earned money. Buy something that you can dress up or down and that will never go out of style.
- Get rid of all those old, crappy wire hangers in your closet. You know, the ones you get from the dry cleaners that are mangled and misshapen? Fork out the money to buy either wooden hangers or those slim velvet ones that save you so much space. You’ll wish you did it years ago.
- Throw out clothes you don’t wear anymore. While you’re working on your closet, let’s go ahead and admit out loud that those “going out” shirts you used to rock just don’t fit your style anymore. If it’s been more than a year since you’ve worn it, get rid of it.
- Drop any grudges that you’re still holding on to from the past. That frenemy from your high school who always seemed to be just a little bit smarter, a little bit prettier, and a little bit more popular? Get over it. Comparing yourselves to others is never going to get you anywhere. You know what will? Loving yourself.
- Stop holding yourself to arbitrary rules. I remember when I just started out my career and had convinced myself that curly hair wasn’t professional and neither were flats. Then I realized that nobody really cared as long as I did a good job, and that nobody was thinking about me as much as I was. I hardly ever wear heels now and my hair straightener is for special occasions, and I’m so much happier that way.
