8 *BEST* Career Advice I Would Give To My 20 Year Old Self
#1 Don’t buy the lie, you sell off today in hopes of a glorious tomorrow.
Getting a job and working five days a week, toiling at the office just to reach the weekend.
Bag your lunch and skip the $6 coffee. Save 10% of your paycheck faithfully for the stock market and your 401K.
Save every penny because compound interest is powerful: $10,000 invested today can grow to $10 million in the next 40 years.
Work hard for 40 years and then retire at 65 to sip margaritas in Hawaii.
This is the narrative you’re often told in your 20s.
And for many, it’s the only path they know.
I was no different. I studied tirelessly to graduate with an A+ grade, found a job, worked overtime, took on extra responsibilities, and waited for the next big promotion or a raise.
The promise was to live your dream life… but at what cost?
Your life.
Quite ironic, right?
After a decade on the job, I can tell you that this dream is sold to many, and it worked wonderfully for previous generations.
I watched my father work in a job for 40 years to retire and thinking live his dream life when he gets retire.
It seemed like an endless cycle that I had grown attached to, barely making any effort to break free from it.
Yesterday, I was listening to a podcast, and Mark Cuban shared this insight (paraphrased):
“In large organizations, there’s often little time for innovation, trying new things, or building interesting projects. No matter how much you see about it on the internet, around 95% of a company’s business comes from ‘business as usual.”
This is something Mark learned from his own experience right after graduating. When he started his career and introduced new ways of working and radical ideas, company didn’t appreciate it.
In the end, he was let go within a year.
So, if you’re slightly above average and smart, you might still find yourself doing the same mundane work every day, no matter which company you work for.
If I were to start all over again, here is the advice I would give to my 20-year-old self who was just beginning their career.
1- Learn transferable skills:
Some of the best skills I’ve acquired in my career includes:
- writing effective emails,
- clear and confident communication,
- learning to say no when necessary,
- negotiation skills,
- and emotional intelligence.
One of the most critical skills you can develop is public speaking and the ability to articulate your thoughts.
Becoming better at presenting your ideas will also help you write better emails and reports.
These skills are valuable not only in your career but also in your personal life.
Utilize them in all aspects of your life.
2- Make yourself interesting:
A few months ago, I attended a dinner with colleagues, and after the initial hellos, the conversation inevitably drifted toward work.
It struck me that there was no other topic that seemed more interesting to everyone.
It made me wonder, is work becoming our entire life or even our identity?
Many people seem to have zero interests outside of work and find everything else boring.
To connect with people on a personal level, I strive to be interesting beyond my day-to-day work.
While I initially associated my identity with my work, I eventually discovered things I enjoy outside of my job.
Some of these include
- reading,
- hiking in nature,
- blogging and writing,
- traveling, and
- learning new things.
You can choose anything that excites you.
This not only helps you form new ideas but also enables you to engage with different people and ultimately makes you feel more fulfilled and happier at work.
3- Listen more and react less:
If you aim to climb the career ladder quickly, learn how to listen effectively.
Pay attention to what most people discuss in meetings and outside of them, and listen to your team members.
Last year, I observed a senior colleague who, during an important meeting with a client, reacted impulsively without fully listening to the other person.
This led to regrettable statements and apologies the following day.
When faced with emotionally charged situations, it’s best to listen actively, especially when you’re uncertain about what to say.
Strategies that help me include:
- deep breathing,
- offering positive gestures of acknowledgment,
- providing a concise and tailored response, and if I’m unsure about a response,
- stating that I’ll return within a specific timeframe.
4- Managing people:
Regardless of your role, title, or industry, one common element is that you’ll need to work with other people.
Unfortunately, many people make themselves difficult to work with due to ego, insecurity, or an inability to collaborate effectively.
This challenge often become a road blocker as you advance in your career.
At the executive level, it’s often said that it’s all about managing the egos of different individuals.
When I began my career, I was hesitant to address bad behaviors, biases or situations where I need to be assertive.
Over the years, I’ve developed skills to deal with such things.
I use:
- humor to defuse tense situations,
- set clear goals and timelines when assigning work, and
- avoid micromanaging.
Instead of working against people, I’ve learned to collaborate with them effectively.
5- Learn new and relevant skills quickly:
Become a self-learner.
Recently, I became curious about DeFi, Blockchain, and Generative AI, and it’s been quite the journey.
If you need to ask others how to do certain things, you might not be the right person for the job.
When abolutely everything is just a search away on the Internet.
The truth is, if you’re not curious about your career goals, you’ll probably never achieve them.
Choose goals that you’re naturally drawn to, where the effort feels effortless.
Even better, find better things you are passionate about.
With the internet, it’s incredibly easy to learn new things.
- Participate in online communities
- Take online courses
- Connect with people who share similar interests and work to learn from them.
6- Take advice with a grain of salt:
When I started my career as a fresher, I was assigned to a senior team member to learn the ropes and the day-to-day work.
Naturally, I trusted him because he had seven years of experience and had been with the project for three years.
However, it turned out that the advice and suggestions he offered were not particularly helpful.
When you’re new to a job, it’s easy to seek advice from everyone around you.
But not everyone will provide you with the right advice or what actually works in your favor.
Instead,
- consider various perspectives from different people,
- use logic and rational thinking,
- experiment with small changes to see what works, and
- most importantly, continuously upgrade your mindset and beliefs.
7- Mediocrity often wins; don’t fight it, move on:
This is one of the profolic lesson I learned in my decade-long career.
I was an excellent student through out my education and received many awards and accolades doing extracurricular activities as well.
At job, you will find out people who has embraced mediocrity, getting by doing bare minimum, and may want you to do the same.
There will be a very few, the exceptional ones, who are genuinely skilled, passionate, and committed to their work.
This is why most people get by doing the bare minimum and delivering subpar results.
Don’t waste your energy analyzing this; around 95% of people fall into this category.
It’s not an insult; it’s simply how businesses operate.
Most people you work with won’t actively strive to improve their skills or performance.
As Tim Denning puts it, they do one year of good work to gain some basic experience and then repeat it for decades, calling it a career.
This reality presents an opportunity for you to stand out, increase your value in the job market, and escape the cycle of mediocrity.
Instead of fighting it, enhance your skills, learn new things, and move forward.
It’s the best thing you can do for yourself while maintaining your integrity and curiosity alive.
8- Cultivate a mindset that advances your career & life:
Your mindset is everything regardless of your life path.
It determines the career opportunities you attract, as hiring managers often evaluate it subtly during interviews.
This mindset that has helped me become an experimenter.
I’ve pivoted roles, led teams when no one else wanted to, and assisted others without ulterior motives.
When you adopt this approach, people naturally gravitate toward you, which helps you build meaningful relationships at work.
Experiment with different roles, employers, industries, and skills, especially early in your career.
This will pay off later in your life.
Take a few risks, and you’ll accelerate your career and life.
Many people never take such risks in their careers and then wonder why something feels lacking.
Think about it.
Be Bold
Be Courageous
Be Your Best
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