7 Things I Wish I Knew When I Was 22

It’s been a year or two since I was 22. (Okay, maybe three or four.) But as I graduated college and started down the path of life, I remember thinking the world was all mine. I was going to get a great job, quickly earn my millions, travel anywhere, any time, and in general live the life everyone wants to live.

Well things obviously changed from my original 22 year old goals. A Lot! And that’s okay, because right now I wouldn’t change a thing. Yet if I had five minutes to go back and tell my 22 year old self a thing or two, this is probably the advice I would give.

1. Don’t worry about picking a “perfect” career right now. Instead, pick something you can learn from. If you want to travel more, get a job on a cruise ship for a year. Your life isn’t cast in stone at 22. Have fun and play around with the jobs you take. It will only help you later in life.

2. Stop with the credit cards, and build up your savings. Invest, invest, invest. Okay, I’ll admit when Andrew and I first got married, we bought a townhome for $30,000. Man I wish I still had that townhome and was collecting rent. And stocks? Why didn’t we invest in Microsoft or Apple? Its fun to look back and dream, but I would definitely tell myself to jump in a lot earlier.

3. Do what is right for you. It’s hard moving away and getting out of your comfort zone. But the time you spend with friends and family will change along the way anyway. Instead of focusing on what you have, focus on what you could have once in a while too.

At one point in our photography career, Andrew and I had the chance to move to Phoenix to start up another photography business. Because our daughter was young and set in a great school environment, we chose not to do it – and are kicking ourselves now. It would have been a great opportunity. Yes, things worked out well staying and doing what we are doing now. But we always wonder “what if” we would have jumped at something entirely new.
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