20 Things People In Their 30s Wish They Knew In Their 20s

Remember when, in 2006, Jay Z rapped, “30’s the new 20,” and you were like, “no, Jay, no it’s not?” Yeah, me too. That was embarrassing for him. Imagine if—rather than trying to convince you he wasn’t old—Hov had instead planted a bunch of brilliant little pieces of advice in your 20-year old brain. That’s what we’re here to do now with our list of 20 things people in their 30s wish they knew in their 20s.

There’s a reason we stress out so much over our third decade: a lot of us expect to have everything figured out by the time we’re 30. “We know that 80 percent of life’s most defining moments take place by age 35,” Meg Jay, a clinical psychologist and author of a book about The Defining Decade, told the crowd at a 2013 TED conference. “We know that the first 10 years of a career has an exponential impact on how much money you’re going to earn. We know that more than half of Americans are married or are living with or dating their future partner by 30.” Messy personal and romantic stuff aside, it’s easy to feel doomed about your career prospects if you can’t find a career spark by the big 3-0. But one of Meg Jay’s most important points is less about completing a requisite number of milestones and more about a general outlook on life: your 20s are a time to learn how to be an adult, which means being responsible now instead of later.

Our list carries one unifying piece of wisdom: keep it simple! Sometime’s that’s easy to forget when you’re stressed out about money, work, and everything in between. But remember: your 20s are about balance. Work hard, party smart, and cherish the decade.