Advice to give to the younger members of society. The under 21s

[Catfood220]

Work a shitty job. I'm not saying make it a career (unless you want to), but everyone should work a shitty job. Like a supermarket or a bar or a restaurant, something where you have to deal with members of the public for crap pay for a couple of years. It will make you humble and when you are done working your time in a shitty job, it will make you more appreciative towards the people who are working a shitty job and serving you in a supermarket, bar or restaurant.

In fact, I'm calling for working a shitty job to be made the new National Service.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Work a shitty job. I'm not saying make it a career (unless you want to), but everyone should work a shitty job. Like a supermarket or a bar or a restaurant, something where you have to deal with members of the public for crap pay for a couple of years. It will make you humble and when you are done working your time in a shitty job, it will make you more appreciative towards the people who are working a shitty job and serving you in a supermarket, bar or restaurant.

In fact, I'm calling for working a shitty job to be made the new National Service.

That sounds like a good idea. Also a good way to pick up interesting stories for later life.

 

[Fractral]

I'm hardly old or experienced enough to give good advice but for the few people who are not so far along the timeline as me: Get a hobby that's not your degree/work. There's literally no downside to picking something up and a whole load of benefits. You meet people, you learn a lot and you when someone asks 'What do you do' you have something to reply with. And if you're like me you'll soon discover that you are both better at and enjoy it more than your degree.

As an under 21, I'm reading the other replies carefully. I think I see a consensus- brb, applying for a job at McDonalds.

 

[Parasondox]

Work a shitty job. I'm not saying make it a career (unless you want to), but everyone should work a shitty job. Like a supermarket or a bar or a restaurant, something where you have to deal with members of the public for crap pay for a couple of years. It will make you humble and when you are done working your time in a shitty job, it will make you more appreciative towards the people who are working a shitty job and serving you in a supermarket, bar or restaurant.

In fact, I'm calling for working a shitty job to be made the new National Service.

Fully agree. Shitty jobs gives you a major life experience, opening your eyes to the most bizarre things and just, as someone else point out, give you stories to tell. A shitty job where you are just a number on the payroll. You are expendable. Well even good jobs have that but its mostly in shitty jobs. Retail jobs is something I think everyone should do. It opens your eyes a bit more to the world and you see why workers are often miserable.

 

[CrazyCapnMorgan]

Don't capture an alligator and throw it through a drive thru window of a fast food restaurant. Or any window for that matter.

Also, some words from a long gone great social critic and comedian...

Spoiler: Bill Hicks

 

[Old Father Eternity]

Though this may well apply to any age group ... find a people you have things in common with and for the love of whatever you hold dear, hope that you've made some good friends among them. It will most likely help a great deal should you ever find yourself in a bad place, which you most likely will at least once on this sodding pebble floating through space.

Though granted that is purely based on what i have seen and heard ... what i can attest to however, is that having something to do other that your work or studies is a major help. Even something as simple as reading or listening to music is good, sure has kept me entertained and distracted enough to get through some of the more abysmal days.

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

Work towards getting a job you actually enjoy, it'll make a career one of the greatest times in your life.
When you have a job you hate, find ways to make it enjoyable, preferably in ways that doesn't anger your boss.
Plan for your retirement to be awesome, if you don't make it to that age, your kids will get a better inheritance, but if you do make it to that age, you won't be one of the old geezers sitting around complaining about everything.

Finally. Take your health seriously, the things you're abusing today will comeback to haunt you.

 

[Wrex Brogan]

Pick your fights. And avoid them. As fun as it is to knuckle someone in the face there's always a better solution.
Don't argue with people on the internet.
Don't argue with people about video games. Kinda related to the above point.
Figure out finances sooner rather than later, it'll save you a whole mess of trouble later on.
No, seriously about those finances. Bills and food are important, prioritize that shit hard.
Have a couple of fun hobbies that you can maintain regardless of workload/finances. Everyone needs a mental re-breather, and these will help a whole bunch.
Don't get hung up on missing an opportunity, work towards another one.
Don't freak out about failures. You can work through them, and learn about them.
Don't be an asshole to people. Yeah, you can be brash and loud, but treat people with respect and only do asshole-y things to them if it's something you're mutually ok with. Respect peoples boundaries, otherwise you're a huge prick.

Finally, don't set fire to things. Fire rarely works out the way you go, and it turns out 'flammable' and 'inflammable' are both bad things to burn. Trust me on that one.

 

[gact]

Lift with your back, eat before you swim, eat as fast as possible, dont wash your hands after getting home, avoid breakfast, jump first without thinking, and assume you are always right.

After making all these mistakes you will truly learn to do the opposite.

 

[stroopwafel]

Don't be dependent on other people for your own happiness. Be independent and always completely honest and sincere to yourself. Don't dwell on emotions that serve no purpose other than giving you suffering. Accept things don't always turn out the way you wished, hoped or wanted but that the only 'failure' lies in not trying. And last but not least...

...play more videogames.

 

[MCerberus]

Core classes are so you know what you're doing at your job
Gen Eds are so you have some grounding in the complexities of the world
Electives are there to make sure you keep your intellectual curiosity and desire to learn, so you bring a different point of view to humanity. Don't blow them off.

Work a service job at least once, one that requires you to interface with customers. So you have a frame of reference to know when you're being a total ponce.

A burden shared is a burden halved. Joy shared is joy multiplied.

Be wary of advice.
But trust you me on the sunscreen

 

[happyninja42]

Think critically and skeptically, but also don't dismiss advice from those older than you off hand. Helping to raise my god daughters has taught me that most of parenting boils down to trying to minimize the number of fuck ups your kids do that you did. Sure you can't keep them from fucking up totally, but you can at least try and keep them from fucking up the same ways that you did. So listen to them when they advise you on things, but still consider the advice. They could be just as full of shit as you think they are, on any given subject.

Take some kind of job that requires you to interact with the public, especially customer service. You develop a better appreciation for people who are serving you when you've been on the other end of that equation.

Always, ALWAYS be nice to the people who have access to your food. Seriously, nothing good can come of you being an asshole to the people who are making/serving your food in public. They have SO many ways to fuck with your food if you piss them off, don't give them a reason to. Be polite to the person in the drive thru, ask them how they're doing today, be sure to say thank you and sound like you fucking mean it. Be VERY nice to them, because many of them are angsty teenagers/young 20's like yourself, and you know how vindictive you can be when someone pisses you off. So don't encourage them.

Learn how to talk to someone about a subject you know nothing about, and actually be interested in it. I'm not saying "fake it", but just remember, that thing that you love, that you totally geek out about, and think is the coolest fucking thing in the world? They've got something like that too, and it might be something that you find totally boring. But to them, it's the absolute coolest fucking thing in the world. So remember that, and ask them about that thing, and why they enjoy it so much. You will endear a lot of people to you if you can make them feel like their interests have value and merit. The easiest way to shut someone down, and make them not want to engage with you, is to make them feel like you don't care what they have to say, or find the things they have interest in stupid/boring. Don't do that. Show interest, ask them about it, give them an opportunity to geek out about it, and let them know you enjoyed the conversation. And honestly, you might find the subject at least interesting to learn about. Doesn't mean you are suddenly going to geek out about it too, but it let's them feel good to know the person they're talking to isn't just humoring them, or clearly doesn't give a shit about what they have to say.


I'm sure there are other nuggets of life wisdom I could list, but I can't remember them right now.

 

[Barbas]

'If you think you don't care about anything or anyone, you're on the track to failing at life. Find something you care about and get to work on it. Don't invent reasons to justify mistreating other people, especially the ones you depend on. Stop trying to put your penis into things and start refining your social graces.'

Do more pull-ups.

Or press-ups. They're fun once you get the hang of them.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

Go to a tech school. Learn a skill. Electrician, plumbing, body ebalming.

Don't follow your dreams. Don't chase after love. GET PAID. That shit can come later.

Credit Cards are the fucking devil. Don't buy anything with them you don't already have the money for, and pay them off right away.

Get a Honda CRV. They're impossible to kill.

It doesn't pay to be rebellious.

Don't drink too much.

When you do drink, eat something. Drink water. This will kill hang over.

A diet big Gulp from 7-11 is a good hang over cure.

Making friends is hard. Try to keep the ones you got.

You can't fight every battle. More often than not you're better off walking away.

Don't tie your happiness to anything or anyone beyond yourself.

Don't date someone that believes in Wiccan magic. Trust.

The very moment a significant other hits you? Bale. Bale the fuck out of there. If they're controlling or threaten suicide? Bale. Get the fuck out there. I am not joking. Every second you're with them will be in dark personal hell.

 

[THM]

-You don't matter. You seriously don't matter, nor should you EVER think you're entitled to any power in terms of shaping society at your age. No matter how much you think you care about one issue in politics or the world, you don't and probably can't know enough to adopt an educated stance.

I'd say that this has to be the most important thing you could say to the younger generation. That, and put down the damn phone - that's a good one, too.

Apart from those (and all the other very good advice already on this thread), I'd say...look where you're going, pay attention in general, and don't look down on someone or their views just because A) they're older than you or B) their views don't match your own.

Also, if you do go to university, keep in mind that it's a place to learn - and part of that learning process is having your views challenged, and your scope widened. You're not going to higher education, or going into thousands in debt, just to get a pat on the head for being such a special snowflake. Life's tough, get a helmet - and realise that not everyone is going to, or is required to, think the way you do, or approach life in the same manner.

 

[Silence]

If you want to save people, start with one person - yourself.

 

[Guffe]

I have two

My first one is a very cliche thing, but it worked for me so here goes:
Follow your dream!
Now to elaborate:
If you're 15-ish of age, and you know what you want to do when you grow up. Find out as much as you can about that (entrance exams, requirements in general and so forth) and start living accoridngly and training up those skills, be they physical, mental or other. Why I picked such a young age as 15, is because then you have time, and small setbacks like an injury won't mean everything falls apart.

Second one:
If you don't know what you want to do, don't worry!
I have friends who are 25-27 years of age and only now know what they want to do. They started studying one thing for a year, didn't enjoy it, changed school and started studying something new for another year, didn't enjoy that and so on. And now at 24-27, when I have already been working with my dreamm job for a year or so, they have found what they want to do, and are starting their 3-5 years of school, preparing for what they want to work with in the future.
And you know what?
That's just as fine as the alternative above!

I just have to put this out here to clarify
I don't know if alternative number 2 is possible in all countries depending on how much studying costs.
But here were I am from (Finland) it is very much possible, with a little work beside the studies, my mates have been doing quite well

 

[Ihateregistering1]

As many have already mentioned (and this is for folks in the States):
-don't go to College 'just to go to College'. You need to think of it as an investment (either in time, money, or both). You wouldn't give a loan to open a restaurant to a person who says "I don't know what the restaurant's theme will be, I don't have a business plan, I don't have a location, and I don't know what the menu will look like", so why would you spend money on school when you don't know what you want to do, not sure what you want to study, and don't know why you're really there?

-This will obviously not be for everyone, but seriously consider the Military. You'll get in shape, learn discipline, you'll have several years of guaranteed healthcare, meals, a job, and a roof over your head (in which time you can think hard about what you want to do for a living) and you'll get to meet and interact with people from tons of different backgrounds. Yes, it sucks ass at times, but I definitely don't regret my time in. Likewise, Post 9/11 GI bill will help with College or school afterwards.

-As many have also mentioned, seriously consider Tech and Trade schools, just be careful of the programs you sign up for. Demand for skilled tradesmen is huge throughout the country, and those guys make lots of money (in Colorado at least, your average Journeyman Pipe-fitter takes home about $66K/year, and that's with zero overtime, and no college degree required).