41 Life Lessons at 41 years old

Sunday was my 41st Birthday - and to mark the occasion, I compiled a list of 41 things I've learned over the past four (+ one) decades. Let's dive in:

On Work

1. Seek to get it right, not be right.
2. Always prioritize doing something over nothing.
3. Be brave enough to be bad at something new.
4. Seek conviction, not hustle.
5. Find your passion - not what you love, but what you are willing to suffer for!
6. The goal a Christian in the marketplace is to be faithful, not successful.
7. Measure inputs, not outputs.
8. Evaluate risk not be the likelihood of success, but by the worthiness of the goal.
9. Commitment leads to Providence. Consistency leads to more Providence.

On Community

1. Hold onto those hugs an extra 2-3 seconds - worth it every single time.
2. Remember someone is probably looking up to you - take the call and reach out.
3. It’s ok to be a better friend to others than they are to you.
4. Be a champion, not a critic.
5. Find people you can share your secret joys with.
6. Have the difficult conversation - always just have it. It’s always worse in your mind.

On Family

1. Life can go by fast - don’t miss the things that make it worth living.
2. If you choose to get married, your spouse will determine approximately 78% of your life - choose wisely, choose fun, choose hobbies, choose someone you trust more than anyone else in the world.
3. If you are fortunate and have children - marvel at them, let them teach you, let them refine you.
4. Tell your family and friends how much you love them (or if needed what’s in the way of you loving them).

On Faith

1. If you are facing difficulties in life then your faith is working.
2. God is a yellow light god - he gives you choices - he rarely traffics in reds and greens.
3. You find peace on the other side of obedience.
4. The world needs more of YOU! It has plenty of other people.
5. If you are a Christian, you are likely to be hurt MORE by Christians. Remember, they are Christians b/c they are sinners and realize they needed a Savior, not b/c they are perfect.
6. Take meaningful risk - you have already conquered this world.
7. God doesn’t owe you any answers. Rejoice when in his grace he chooses to give them.

On Pain

1. Forgive quickly - bitterness is a worse pill than pain.
2. Everyone is experiencing some kind of pain - give the benefit of the doubt.
3. Most people don’t dislike you - they simply don’t think about you at all.
4. Learn to pray through your tears.
5. When it’s really really really bad - call someone, anyone … immediately.

On Life

1. Pursue boredom - lots of hidden life in there!
2. Life is not a problem to be solved, but a journey to be lived.
3. You are unique - you have a contribution. If you can’t find it … ask others to help you!
4. Decisions are not as irreversible as people think. (with few exceptions - choose spouse wisely ;)
5. Have the courage to be disliked.
6. Start the thing on your mind … today … now … after reading this post.
7. Don’t let others limit what you can do - very few people understand what you are capable of.
8. Be honest, and when you aren’t, apologize quickly and ask forgiveness (seriously use this word).
9. Happiness = reality minus expectations. Set the expectations accordingly.
10. Freaking laugh, cry, dance, sing and yell more often than you think!

Biggest learning - One Size Fits One - Find your own path, let others help you, but the world needs more of you and only you TRULY know who you are.

And ... when in doubt, design your own hat on Etsy!

PS: I love one-liners. Some of these are very likely not original, but stored them in my head and forgot who said them. Apologies to anyone - I love you all - hopefully this means you made a huge impact on me ;)