My Advice to my 18 year old has become a cliche on the internet. Everyone writes it. Yet, every writer wants to help people. He wants to tell people what worked and what not in his life – to have a guiding point for the youngsters. Every writer is selfless when he writes.
This is my advice to my 18 year old.

1. Be Humble. Humility is rarest.

2. Always aim high.

3. Learn practical things.

4. Learn to choose.

5. Filter – Filter in everything you do.

6. Do give importance to having your base. Your base income and base money. Dedicate yourself to having that.

7. Don’t wait for things to happen. If you can, do it.

8. Read books instead of distractions. Books have timeless value.

9. Read great books.

10. Whatever you want to pursue, look out for the greatest from that thing – The Idols. Even if you will try to follow them, you won’t be able to. Instead, you will create your own way.

11. Practice utmost patience.

12. Always wait for things.

13. Don’t rush for things, instead, let things come to you. Right time will come.

14. Rather than compromising on something little today, wait and pursue for the best thing. This is called Delayed Gratification. At first, it seems tough, but then it gets easy.

15. Never compromise on quality.

16. I can understand money would be an issue. Do understand that if you break boundaries of your mind, if you believe in limitless things, that issue soon will get out of the fence. This seems paranormal at first, but it is true. Money is not earned with rigidity of your mind. It is earned with freedom of your mind.

17. Practice meditation.

18. Learn to create algorithms. Learn to create systems.

19. Learn to live alone. Life is a single player game. Learn to Love yourself first – This seems easy to understand, but tough to practice.

20. Listen music. In loneliness, music can always be your best friend.

21. Few great friends are priceless rather than many so called friends.

22. Leisure is good, there is nothing bad in it as the society says. Creation happens from leisure.

23. Listen to everyone, do what you want to do.

24. Travel, travel to search- whatever you want to search, it may be buildings, it may be cars, it may be roads, it may be nature, whatever you may search, in the end, you will find yourself. (Do read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig. It is a classic.)

25. Ride a motorcycle. (And do watch – 10 Strategies to keep you alive by nutnfancy. Watch it every year. Best Practical Advice.)

26. Learn photography. Not for those stupid social media things, but for yourself only.

27. Do take care of your things. This way, you show them respect.

28. Lift Weights. Run, Jog, Walk. Fitness is Priceless.

29. Life is meaningless. Only you have to give meaning to it.

30. As you age, you start to give less f***s about things. So start giving less f***s about things right now. You’ll be more powerful.

31. Be with babies and children, they show you that everything is meaningless. They will always bring smile to your face.

32. Always remember, life is not to be stressed over petty things. Life is to be lived.

33. Time is the most important thing in this world. Once lost, you’ll never have it back. Protect it more than your life. The more you’ll use your time for your deep curiosities, the more fulfilling your life will be.

34. With age, your dreams will start to fade away. Your spark will start to lose. People will mock your dreams, do remember – they don’t know importance of Dreams. Do whatever you have to, but don’t let that spark die. Dream more, dream big. Your heart is not alive because of blood & flesh, it is alive because of Dreams only.

This is most important –
N N Taleb said once, “For I have a single definition of success: you look in the mirror every evening and wonder if you disappoint the person you were at 18, right before the age when people start getting corrupted by life.”