If you could go back...

[Phoenix87x]

In 2 weeks I turn 30 and its had me thinking about how totally different I am now then when I was when I was 18, when I was just starting adult life. And there's a lot that I wish I knew when I was 18.

So the question:

Knowing what you know now, if you could go back and give advice to your 18 year old self what would it be. what would you say?

[Chino]

When Brendan says "Hey, I have an offer for $5k worth of Bitcoin, do you want to go halves with me?", you say yes. Pull out your check book and give him the money.

[SwedishGoose]

Put as much as you can into something that will be called Facebook....

[Architeuthis]

I wish my younger past self could come to the future and kick my ass for the dumb decisions I've made in my early forties.. lol!

[gmillerdrake]

Listen to your father and don’t touch that $20k you’ll inherit on your 18th birthday. Put it in another long term CD or something else. Whatever you do don’t tell your dad ‘not To worry about it’ and subsequently blow it all in less than a year.

[Adami]

Enjoy your hair while you have it.



Honestly, I wouldn't change anything else about my life. Better or worse, it made me who I am today, and I like who I am. Wouldn't want to lose that.

[TheCountOfNYC]

I’m only 24, but the thing I would tell my 18 year old self would be to apply to that music college instead of choosing to go to school with your girlfriend at home. I ultimately dropped out of college because I wasn’t learning what I needed to learn and I’m no longer with that girl (as those of you who have followed my saga in The Lonely Hearts Club Thread already know). I could have had so many great opportunities from going to that school but instead I banked on being with my high school sweetheart for the rest of my life. Unless you’re married or have a family with someone, never choose your significant other over your career or potential career.

[The Walrus]

Me at 18... almost 9 years ago.

I'd tell my young(er), dumb(er) self to only focus on myself and nobody else, because you'll regret not chasing your dreams while you had the best possible chance. And to never go to that music festival.

[Anguyen92]

I would say a couple of things to myself 6-7 years ago.  One, do not have that dream of making money as an online poker player at 18-19.  You are not good enough to beat the player pool and online poker is going to go belly up in the states the year after.

Two, actually do pick accounting/finance as your major when you enter college, not two years after you graduated high school.  It's actually more challenging and more enjoyable in ways that you had no idea of knowing and that it's a major that will actually land you a steady job in the long run.

Three, stay connected with your high school friends as often, especially those you know that goes to the same church as you are.  Those guys are in the church choir and it's actually quite enjoyable at a time watching them every Sunday evening and it would have nicer if you were able to maintain and cherish those relationships then rather than let it dwindle away until you move to another county and they are too busy/have no interest in contacting you.

[Destiny Of Chaos]

I would tell my younger self not to choose such a cheesy  user name

[lonestar]

Nothing. Any piece of advice would make me stray from the path that led to my ex and eventually the birth of my kid. I would avoid 18 year old me like the plague.


Now if we want to talk about 27 year old me, fresh off a divorce and at a huge fork in the road in which I took a fifteen year long path that pretty much destroyed everything I had, yeah, I got some advice for that dumbfuck. Stay in Atlanta, and check your drunk ass into a program.

[Herrick]

I'd say, "Herrick, in a couple years you're going to start listening to what will end up being one of your favorite bands. Don't wait 16 years to see them live."

[wolfking]

I'm 33 and think this sort of thing all the time.  Saying that, I still don't really know what I'd tell myself.  Things are going pretty fine, and I have a steady full time job that I've heald for 9 years. 

Saying that, I'd probably tell myself to study and go through with something at university.  I've been money hungry from the start and didn't like the study thing, but I wish I did now.  I have a permanent job, but nothing that I could really call a career, which could bite me down the track.

[cramx3]

Was just talking to my college roommate about this, what would we have done differently in college?  I don't think I'd necessarily do something different, but I wish I had more confidence in myself back then. 

[TAC]

Was just talking to my college roommate about this, what would we have done differently in college?  I don't think I'd necessarily do something different, but I wish I had more confidence in myself back then.

Yeah, that's probably it. I'm not sure I'd change much.

[mike099]

I would have finished college on time instead of quitting my 4th year and going back 8 years later.

[Anguyen92]

Oh, here's one more thought that I would say to myself at 18.

Do have a better appreciation of music outside of hard rock/heavy metal and find ways to discover music outside of WWE playing their songs.  You can still love bands like Alter Bridge, Shinedown, Seether, Skillet, and Daughtry, but there's a huge world out there of good music and it's best to discover them now than 5 years down the line.  Bands like Owl City, Zac Brown Band, Poets of the Fall, etc. are pretty good and there's going to be a up-and-comer named Ed Sheeran that's going to be a mega superstar, but still can write pretty good songs that one can relate to.

P.S.  Get into Rush now than two years before their final tour.

[Stadler]

Was just talking to my college roommate about this, what would we have done differently in college?  I don't think I'd necessarily do something different, but I wish I had more confidence in myself back then.

Yeah, that's probably it. I'm not sure I'd change much.

This.   The stuff about "investing in [whatever]" is what it is; hindsight is 20/20.  But for me, it's much more about just "own yourself".   The shit you cared about then didn't matter 20 minutes after you cared for it, let alone 20 years later.   I got divorced when I was 46 or so, and I would talk to ANYONE at any time, no judgment, no "eew, that guy is weird!" or "that girl is ugly" nonsense.   And I wish I was able to do that when I was 18. 

[Adami]

Hmmm, if I could turn back time? If I could find a way?

Well, I'd take back those words that hurt you. And you'd stay.

[lonestar]

Hmmm, if I could turn back time? If I could find a way?

Well, I'd take back those words that hurt you. And you'd stay.

Someone had to do it.

[King Postwhore]

Hmmm, if I could turn back time? If I could find a way?

Well, I'd take back those words that hurt you. And you'd stay.

It's not the same unless you wear the same outfit.

[Adami]

Hmmm, if I could turn back time? If I could find a way?

Well, I'd take back those words that hurt you. And you'd stay.

It's not the same unless you wear the same outfit.

Then it's the same.

[King Postwhore]

[ReaperKK]

When Brendan says "Hey, I have an offer for $5k worth of Bitcoin, do you want to go halves with me?", you say yes. Pull out your check book and give him the money.

This was my biggest thing. I was a member of a forum that did a lot of bitcoin mining and thinking about buying some and figured it'd be a waste of money.

As for overall advice I'd tell myself to worry about myself and not what others think of me. Also go to the doctors and get your ADD diagnosed early.

[rumborak]

I would probably have a hard time convincing my younger self that I'm from the future. Given how much I liked Back To The Future already back then, I suspect I would have to answer the question "Tell me, future man, who is president in the year 2017?" I suspect the answer would illicit the same reaction as "Ronald Reagan" did in 1955.

[Adami]

I would probably have a hard time convincing my younger self that I'm from the future. Given how much I liked Back To The Future already back then, I suspect I would have to answer the question "Tell me, future man, who is president in the year 2017?" I suspect the answer would illicit the same reaction as "Ronald Reagan" did in 1955.

But then your younger self will remember the broken future that had Biff as a huge guy. He'll realize that Trump being president means that your present is broken and that he needs to fix things.

He'll believe you.

[rumborak]

Not sure he'd help. After all the fixing, Marty still ended up with not-so-hot Jennifer. The original one, the hot one, never returned. I mean sure, your parents are all cool now and you have your own truck now, but you're still stuck with a bad copy of your girlfriend.

[bout to crash]

"None of this shit will matter in 15 years, especially what these assholes think of you. Just do you, gurl."

[wolfking]

Was just talking to my college roommate about this, what would we have done differently in college?  I don't think I'd necessarily do something different, but I wish I had more confidence in myself back then.

Yeah, that's probably it. I'm not sure I'd change much.

Good call this.

[Implode]

I think I might tell myself to stop being so self-centered.

Other than that, I don't think I'd want to change any decisions I made other than getting in on the ground floor with some things. Things like: talk to and become friends with future famous person, invest in something that will blow up in a few years, etc.

[lordxizor]

It's hard to picture any changes to my past not drastically changing my future. So I definitely wouldn't go back to the days before I met my wife, even though there are a couple of changes that would have saved me a lot of heartache. I would probably tell myself to be more purposeful with our spending habits in the early days of our marriage and when we first had kids. Spend money on things you care about, take more vacations, and stop wasting money on more crap you don't really need.

[JayOctavarium]

Wait...

18 to the day?  Because I'd tell myself not to ignore my dad when he tries to call me and wish me a happy birthday. Because he's going to be killed the next day.


If I wind up talking to myself after my dad dies, I'd tell myself a few things. 1: The redhead is going to cheat on you and probably already has been. 2: Learn to bowl properly. 3: Take that money you just got from your dad's death and invest into Bit Coin, as in 9 years you will be working somewhere where you're going to be dealing with a guy worth tens of millions due to bitcoin.

[millahh]

You won't yet understand that you need it, but find a therapist ASAP and start talking about your family...

[MirrorMask]

After having seen 11/22/63, I'm afraid that changing the past will have catastrophic consequences in the future 

Sure, I could tell myself to not hold on so fiercely to a job that would have left me unemployed (happy ending, I found another one some months later), but then taking other paths of life would probably steer me away from the many people I know today, so...

Still, some advices would be nice, as:
- You won't be that annoyed or scared by planes. Fly more, start now!
- Come 2010 don't annoy and lose three friends out of three
- At the same time start dropping around casually suggestions to your uncle and your mother about frequent health checks. One could still be here and the other could have a lot less of trouble.

[Harmony]

Have fun, but party less and study more.  Take care of your brain.

Travel more.  Seek out opportunities to leave your comfort zone.

Care less about what other people think.  Embrace your uniqueness.  There is only one you.

Get your anxiety under control now.

And what millahh said.