I hated the pawn shops in my young teens.
Visits to the pawn shops were frequently accompanied with anger and shame.
Times were tough and my family had to pawn away most items valuable to survive.
I turn 32 today.
And I’m incredibly grateful for the life I have.
Looking back, I consider myself extremely lucky to have been born in Singapore and met the right people who have opened up a lot of doors for me over the years.
Here are 8 things I know at 32, I wish I had known earlier:
1/ Everything is going to be okay.
No matter how dark it looks.
Just keep working hard and focus on the process.
The outcome will eventually take care of itself.
2/ Don’t be afraid to take bets on yourself
So long as it doesn’t wipe you out.
You can always turn things around. Especially when you are young.
• Take a gap year,
• Explore your interests and
• Don’t let fear hold you back from pursuing your passion.
3/ Happiness is when you…
• Have the autonomy to do what you love
• Get to be the most authentic version of yourself
• Have complete control on how and who you want to spend your time and energy with
It’s not about chasing wealth and status endlessly.
4/ Increase your luck surface area
Luck favors the prepared.
The best way to increase your luck surface area is to create online.
After I started sharing my thoughts here, many opportunities came to me.
Like growing wealth, start early.
5/ Reach out to people you admire
The best way to grow is to hang around brilliant folks.
Don’t be too worried about getting rejected.
Or let imposter syndrome prevent you hold you back.
6/ Real education begins outside of school
Spend more time learning from books and gaining hands on experience.
Less on chasing grades.
That’s where the real learning starts.
7/ Remove anyone who drains you
Hang around folks who plays the positive-sum game.
And grow together with them.
Remove anyone who is only in it for their own benefit.
8/ Resting is as important as hustling
Both your physical health and mental health are just as important.
Operating at a sustainable pace is key to compounding over time.
And oh yes…
Stretch.