In the first chapter of Felix Dennis’s “How To Get Rich” (a phenomenal book by the way; I’m enjoying every single word of it), he mentions how he’d happily trade all of his fortune to be 20 and have that youthful energy again.
Ambition, fearlessness, self-belief, stamina, a degree of callousness, a willingness to learn. These are your advantages over the middle-aged and the old. “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may!” Could you turn the clock back for me by forty years, I would willingly swap you every penny and every possession I own in return. And I would have the better of the bargain, too!
That part really sticks with me. Here we have a guy, barely in his mid-60s, having $500 million (500 hundred fucking million dollars) to his name, saying that he would gladly be penniless again if only he could experience the wonder of youth once more.
You have no idea how much the stamina of the young is envied by the rest of us. Along with a degree of callousness and enviable powers of speedy recuperation from reverses, stamina is your secret weapon. Its attributes will see you through a raft of catastrophes that would virtually annihilate older men and women.
It feels like I’m listening to the proverbial white-bearded old man who has seen it all sharing his bits of wisdom to a young man.
Young folks like us barely appreciate the gift we have; our energy, enthusiasm, recklessness, speed of recovery, an undying sense of wonder, all will be gone by the time we pass the halfway point in life. And there is no way back.
Having kept that in mind, we have the fairly recent YOLO phenomenon: you’re only young once, so live fast, live freely, be wild, party hard, do reckless stunts, before you grow old and wither away, never having the chance to experience the fun once more!
I’m not a fan of this “philosophy” (if you can even call it that) at all. Partying and having fun? You can always do that later, anytime in life. It’s an easy task.
However, it is exactly because youth is so precious and powerful, that I believe it should be dedicated to doing what is hard. What requires effort, energy, relentless dedication, a bit of that naive and youthful optimism, the stamina to bust your arse, nights in and nights out, pursuing a stupid dream.
Can a 50-year-old still have the drive to follow his wildest dream? I highly doubt it. His body no longer permits the hustle. He is too experienced. Too… fixed. Prejudiced. Has too much to lose: a reputation, a family, material possessions.
An inexperienced and empty-handed 20-year old has none of the above obstacles and can go after whatever the hell pipe dream he so wishes.
Anyway, I guess what I’m saying is, Felix’s ideas resonate with me a lot. I know that at least for the late millionaire, he did not regret having busted his arse during his younger days.
I hope I won’t either.
My life right now is, well, pretty fun-less. I think about work, my start-up projects, all the time. If I’m not working, I’m exercising. By myself – not in a playing-sports-having-fun-with-friends kind of way. Other times I’m reading or writing something. I almost never go out, socialise, much less drink.
I suppose this could be a bit too extreme, but in a way I feel like I only have this window of opportunity during my 20s to get it done altogether. To put every ounce of me into building something I can later be proud of, to leave a legacy behind, and to never have to regret.
Perhaps I will fail spectacularly. Still, it’s either that or to be constantly haunted by the thought of “Man, what if….” for the rest of my life.
Youth is priceless. Do not let it go to waste.
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