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Men who are 30 and over share the 15 life lessons younger guys must learn early

"Don't let people treat you poorly. Not your girlfriend, not your buddy, not your family."

A man in his 50s with some good advice.

It’s impossible for anyone who has reached middle age to look back on their early 20s and not believe they squandered some of their precious resources, whether the vitality of their youth or the seemingly infinite time they thought they had on this earth. But you don’t learn to truly appreciate these things until one day, you want to go to bed at 9 pm, and time has sped up so rapidly that you’re having a hard time catching up.

Countless people have tried to tell younger people to appreciate the vitality of their youth, and by making good decisions at a young age, you’ll be much happier when you get older. However, that advice is usually ignored because most people don’t have the foresight to appreciate the wisdom we accumulate with age. It seems that, sadly, most of us have to learn our lessons the hard way.

For young people out there willing to entertain the idea that they don’t know everything, a group of men who are 30 and over on Reddit shared the lessons that “every guy” should learn early on. To sum it up, they believe that young people should understand that time flies fast and they should always have one eye on their future selves. They should also learn that being a good guy is better than being a hothead and that you are not invincible, no matter how powerful you feel. It’s also important to stand up for yourself and have integrity because your character will follow you wherever you go.

great advice, wisdom, helpful advice, gen x men, gen z men, positive masculinityA man in his 20s upset.via Canva/Photos

Here are 15 lessons men 30 and up think every guy should learn early.

1. Make sure people treat you right

"Don't let people treat you poorly. Not your girlfriend, not your buddy, not your family."

"Absolutely. It's a skill to carry yourself in a way where you are respected. People learn quick who they can talk down on and who not to mess with. If you speak up for yourself, people are more likely to keep their opinions to themselves."

2. You're not young forever (although you may think it)

"You are only young for a period of your life. You are actually 'older' for most of your life so make sure your decisions take that into consideration."

"I didn't feel like an adult until I was 26-28. That's when it really hit me. I feel 26 until I speak to an actual 26-year-old."

"You'll still feel 26 in your 40s and 50s until you try to do physical stuff like you did at that age."

3. Admit your mistakes

"Admit when you make a mistake and learn from it. And don’t try to hide them either. I’ve avoided so much conflict in my adult life by being able to go to someone and say, 'I need you to know I made a mistake, and I’m going to correct it,' or else, 'I messed up, and I need help.' Trying to blame someone else when it was genuinely your fault always causes more problems, and mistakes you try to hide almost always get found out eventually."

"Owning up to your mistakes and finding wisdom in your experiences is about as manly as it gets. Right on, brother."


4. You're not indestructible

"All the little injuries you pile up in your 20s and 30s will haunt you later."

"At 24, I jumped off a two-story house to entertain people at a party. At 40, I feel like someone has taken a sledgehammer to my back. I'm not a detective, but I think these two things are connected."

5. Don't waste your time

"By far, it has to be learning the value of TIME. So many people in this world don't grasp this until it's far too late in life. Don't waste your time doing things you hate, or being around bad people."

Pink Floyd said it best:

"'And then one day you find/ten years have got behind you/no one told you when to run/you missed the starting gun.'" I remember sitting in my car at 25 listening to that line and realizing I had first heard it 10 years earlier. It felt like a blink of an eye. Now I'm coming up on another 10 since that."


- YouTubewww.youtube.com

6. Value kindness

"Be kind, it's its own reward."

"It helps my mental health so much, just letting cars into your queue, saying please and thank you to people who don’t hear it often, talking to elderly people who rarely speak to others etc. Just trying to be a cheerful chill dude makes me very happy, happier than almost any possession I can think of buying."


7. Lift people up

"You’re not that funny when you put other people down. You are more of a man when you lift people up."

"This 100%. I teach middle school students, and I’m always trying to teach this. Also, how it shows way more strength to admit you’re wrong and apologize than lie and never own up to things."

8. Work out

"On a related note, it is a lot easier to not consume 300 calories than it is to burn 300 calories."

"This is the best blanket advice in here. I didn't start working out until I was 32. I was 50lbs overweight and felt like crap. Working out and making it a part of your daily routine has such a massive domino effect over your entire life, physically, mentally, routine, work ethic, literally everything. This should be mandatory for everyone to start at a young age and develop good habits. This coupled with proper eating/cooking habits are paramount."

9. Save for retirement

"Start saving for retirement. I know you've all heard it, but I can't stress how much more money you earn from your savings during your twenties. This is not a drill. Start saving money you don't touch until retirement."

"Compounding interest is very powerful, and it’s at its most powerful over a long period of time. So start young. The S&P 500 averages a 10% yearly return. At that rate, if you can invest $500 per month, then in 30 years, you’ll have over $1 million."


savings, retirement, couple doing bills, responsibility, wisdom, adviceA couple saving money.via Canva/Photos

10. Be a man of your word

"Your integrity is the only thing that can’t be taken from you."

"If you wouldn't want people knowing you said it/ did it don't say it/do it."

11. Don't wait

"The best way to improve your life is for you to improve your life. If you wait for someone or something to happen, it won't. Work today to improve your life in any way that you feel you need it."

"You're absolutely right and it deserves repeating, IT WILL NOT BE EASY, going to the gym sucks, going to school sucks, studying sucks the list is infinite but there's just no way around it. IT WILL NOT BE EASY, if it was, everyone would be doing it."

"No one is coming to save you. Do it yourself."

12. Plenty of fish in the sea

"There are literally millions of women. Why obsess over that ONE?"

"My advice is instead of worrying about women, work on yourself instead. Work on making yourself the happiest version of you, and then you will naturally find someone. Don't chase anyone or waste any time on anyone that's not interested."


breakup, love lost, heartbreak, the one, obsession, love advice, move on, A man and a woman have a fight.via Canva/Photos


13. Stretch

"Connective tissue health is underrated. Most common training injury."

"Flexibility naturally decreases as you age unless you take steps to maintain it. Improving it is hard. It's also crucial for progressing in many, many exercises."

14. Maintain friendships

"Don't burn bridges with people and try your best to maintain friendships."

"For one reason or another, the buddy list shrinks more and more as time goes on."

"I'm in my forties and have definitely had friends that have fallen off the list, but I continue to make friends along the way. I think it might be that I put serious effort into maintaining old relationships and trying to form new ones."

15. Make friends with women

"Make friends with women; And I don’t mean make friends with to have romantic relationships later… like just be platonic friends. Having someone that you can talk to with a different perspective can be so beneficial."

"Second this. Plus, if you're a good friend to a woman, she's likely to introduce you to her friends and vouch for you, which opens up more opportunities for romantic relationships. or more friends."

When a woman acts like she knows a man it's a clear signal

Most women, at one point or another, have felt some wariness or fear over a strange man in public. Sometimes it's overt, sometimes it's subtle, but when your instincts tell you something isn't right and you're potentially in danger, you listen.

It's an unfortunate reality, but reality nonetheless. A Twitter thread starting with some advice on helping women out is highlighting how real this is for many of us. User @mxrixm_nk wrote: "If a girl suddenly acts as if she knows you in public and acts like you're friends, go along w[ith] it. She could be in danger."

Other women chimed in with their own personal stories of either being the girl approaching a stranger or being the stranger approached by a girl to fend off a situation with a creepy dude.

One wrote, "A girl did this FOR me one time when I was sitting alone at a bar because she could tell I was in a very uncomfortable situation and I'll never forget her. It was bld of her to do that for a stranger but she literally saved me from some creep ass guy."

Another added, "I had a waitress do this for me once when an ex was yelling at me. She didn't leave me out of her sight and when he went to the bathroom she asked if I was ok and if I had roommates or if I was going to be alone with him after. An actual angel."

Another shared how a woman joined her and her husband as if they were old friends until her friends arrived.

good men, women, men, stalkers, harassment, adviceA man holds a woman's hand while another man watcheswww.flickr.com

"A woman walked up to my husband and I saying 'I haven't seen you guys in so long!!' then hugged us. We were ???, but went w/ it. She then pointed out a group of guys that followed her in, and the one that wouldn't leave her alone. He kept getting drinks right near us. Which was odd because we were in the corner out of the way. She hung out w/ us until her other friends got there. Once we realized what had actually happened we were a little shocked."

User "AmberLUVV" shared a story of being in a Dominican Republic port on a cruise when two girls pretended to belong to her family.

"When I went on a cruise with the fam, we ported in DR for a day. My dad and I decided to go the local shopping market. We had took a break on a bench cuz it was HOT! But all of sudden two girls walk up to us and addressed my dad as their own, and proceeded to say that they had And scared! We played it out for a minute longer until they told us what happened! Some men in a van were following them promising to take them to the beach and wouldn't leave them alone! They pointed out one of the guys and I had seen him turn away when they addressed my dad!"


"Raeloe" shared how a girl approached her at a nightclub to get away from a creepy guy when she'd been separated from her friends.

"I had this happen in a nightclub once. My hubby and I were working PAX and this club let's [sic] the enforcers in for free with their badges, I've never been before so he said c'mon let's go. Bout 2 hours in this girl comes up and dances with me and asks if it's okay to stay awhile. She lost her friends and this dude was creeping on her. I told her to take all the time she needs to find her friends. She came back with them later and gave me a big hug for making her feel safe. Would do it again without hesitation."


Another person shared how they'd been the one who needed help.

"Been the person who needed this. Creepy dude wouldn't leave me tf alone, so I walked over to a group of girls and acted very excited to see them again. They immediately caught on and we started talking about whatever. For over an hour. Bcuz he wouldn't leave. They ended up giving me a ride around town bcuz the creeper was following. Made some friends and we made him run a red light, which had a cop chasing him. They got me home and we hung out regularly after that."

And another explained how grateful she was to a woman on the bus who let her act like they were best friends.

One person even shared a video showing exactly what such a scenario looks like in real life.


Some people responded with various "what if" scenarios, like what if a woman is really trying to lure them into a dangerous situation, or what if they want them to accompany them somewhere that might not be safe? But those questions seemed to miss the point that no one was suggesting anyone go anywhere private with anyone, and also seemed to miss how often women actually do find themselves in situations where they need to turn to a stranger for help.

As one woman wrote, "All the people fighting this saying it'll be a setup are underestimating how often women actually do this to get away from creepy men. I've had to do this at a bar and I've also gone up to a women I saw distressed and pretended to be her friend and she played along. It happens."

men helping women, harassment, danger, women, men Most men want to be helpful to women and this is a great way to do thatPhoto by Nikolas Noonan on Unsplash

"I've yelled back. I've thrown drinks in guys faces. I've pushed them away from myself and others. I've reached out for help and asked other guys or security to step in. Sometimes the path of least resistance for a good night is to blend in real quick."

And others pointed out that women don't generally approach men for help unless they feel like they really need to—usually because they end up in situations where men don't respond to the word "no."

Finally, someone suggested a tip for using your phone to ask a girl if she's in danger while pretending to show her a picture, so you both can be clear on what's really happening.

But the bottom line is, if a girl or woman walks up to you and pretends to know you, more often than not it's because she's trying to get away from someone. Play along and accompany her until she's safe. Guaranteed she'll be eternally grateful.

This article originally appeared five years ago.

Millennials are now old enough to seriously reflect on life.

It seems like only yesterday a millennial was a college kid that baby boomers chided for being entitled and Gen Xers thought were way too sincere and needed to learn how to take a joke. Today, the oldest millennials, those born around 1980, have hit their 40s and have lived long enough to have some serious regrets.

They also have enough experience to take some pride in decisions that, in hindsight, were the right moves. The good news is that at 40 there is still plenty of time to learn from our successes and failures to set ourselves up for a great second half of life. These lessons are also valuable to the Gen Zers coming up who can avoid the pitfalls of the older generation.

A Reddit user who has since deleted their profile asked millennials nearing 40 “what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?” and they received more than 2,200 responses. The biggest regrets these millennials have are being flippant about their health and not saving enough money when they were younger.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com



They also realized that the carefree days of youth are fleeting and impossible to get back. So they should have spent less time working and more time enjoying themselves. Many also lamented that they should have taken their education more seriously in their 20s so they have more opportunities now.

The responses to this thread are bittersweet. It's tough hearing people come to grips with their regrets but the realizations are also opportunities to grow. Hopefully, some younger people will read this thread and take the advice to heart.

Here are 21 of the most powerful responses to the question: “Millennials of Reddit now nearing your 40s, what were your biggest mistakes at this point in life?”

hearing, millennials, regrets, millennial lessons, millennial regrets, loud music, headphonesA big millennial regret is not taking care of their hearingImage via Canva

1. "Not taking care of my hearing, not even 35 and going deaf." — Kusanagi8811

2. "Not getting healthy earlier." — zombiearchivist

millennial advice, work life balance, regrets, millennial regrets, workMillennials wish they had learned about work/life balance soonerImage via Canva

3. "Staying too long at a job in my 20s, just because it was safe and easy. When I finally got the motivation to leave, ended up with an almost 50% pay boost." — Hrekires

4. "Thinking that I could and should put myself on the back burner for anything and anyone else." — lenalilly227

millennials, smoking, cigarettes, quitting smoking, millennial regrets, millennial adviceMillennials smoke less than previous generations but it's still a big regret for manyImage via Canva

5. "Smoking and not dealing with my shit the right way." — Allenrw3

6. "Pining after the wrong person." — runikepisteme

7. "I turned 40 this year and just started liking who I am. Why the fuck did it take 40 years for self acceptance?" — guscallee

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

8. "Take care of your fucking back. Lift with your knees. Sure it's rad when you grab a fridge by yourself and lift it in the back of a moving truck unaided, but one day that shit is going to have consequences that won't just magically go away by resting and "taking it easy" for a week." — GuyTallman

9. "I wish I spent more time with my dad while I had the chance." — CharlieChooper

10. "I'm 37. I absolutely could have taken better care of my body, but I'm in relatively good health. I'm starting to realize how important it is to maintain my health. I do also think I drank far too much in my 20 and early 30's. I'm trying to rectify that now, but it's hard. So that I guess." — dartastic

millennials, millennial regrets, millennial advice, indecision, life choices Indecision can be a bigger regret than making the wrong decisionImage via Canva

11. "I'm not sure if people have experienced the same but when I entered my 30s I became convinced I was rapidly running out of time. Rather than using that as motivation I let it paralyze me with indecision because I "couldn't afford to make the wrong choice." Consequently, I'm now 39 and, though I've had great things happen in my 30s, I regret spending so much time worrying and so little time committing to a course of action." — tomwaste

12. "Work to live, don’t live to work. You have half your working life after you turn 40 but only 20-25 years to really live it up before the responsibilities become heavy and your joints start to ache. Live life. Really LIVE it. Experience as much you can. Every sensation, sight, sound, touch. Be open. Be brave. Live your first few decades in the fast lane. You have the rest of your life to take it easy, when you have no choice." — MrDundee666

How To Save $10,000 FASTwww.youtube.com

13. "I should have paid more attention to my parents telling me to save money and less attention when they were teaching me about purity culture." — Arkie_MTB

14. "If I could tell my 18 year old self one thing, it would be to save 10% of every paycheck I ever got." — PutAForkInHim

15. "Thinking that I have time to do everything I want only to find myself loosing time, and the endless energy I used to have in order to purse them." — ezZiioFTW

sunscreen, skin cancer, millennials, millennial regrets, millennial adviceMillennials were the first generation to really adopt wearing sunscreenImage via Canva

16. "Not wearing sunscreen." — blueboxreddress

17. "Not recognizing the importance of work/life balance earlier in life. My late teens, all 20's, and early 30's were spent pulling 60-100+hr weeks because I thought it was what was required to succeed. How wrong I was. Others stabbed me in the back and reaped the reward.1.) Putting work first for too long. Work is my #1 priority during work hours now. After quitting time, I don't think about it (much) anymore. I don't vent to my wife or friends about it anymore either.2.) Investing more into fast cars than solid long-term investments. Sure, it was fun, but I could have made bookoos more had I put that towards less-fun investments.3.) Not using PTO and just waiting for the payout. All those years, missed. I'm in my mid 30's and I didn't actually have a real vacation until 3 years ago.4.) Not realizing that "the good guy" often loses. Just because you're morally justified doesn't mean you're going to win. Just because there's a number to call doesn't mean anyone will actually help you. Just because "law" exists, doesn't mean people follow it, enforce it, or create justice. The world is dog eat dog and cynicism can be healthy in moderate doses."

18. "When you get out of college, keep your friends. No matter how hard it is. Hold on to them." — mpssss22

19. "I imagine these are kinda universal: Not getting fit and healthyAssuming I'd be offered proper guidance on how to achieve my goalsAssuming higher education would help me achieve my goalsSpending far too long caring what people thinkNot taking risks that might better my life when I was younger and had nothing to loseStaying in relationships too long after they were clearly done." — katapultperson

millennials, finance, fair pay, salary, millennial advice, financial advice, millennial regretsLearning to ask for fair pay was a big challenge for most Millennials Image via Canva

20. "Always ask for more pay. Starting, yearly, before leaving, whatever. Get that money." — SensibleReply


21. "Spending too much time in front of a screen and not enough enjoying life." — BellaPadella


This article originally appeared three years ago.

Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash
a woman stares into a man's eyes lovingly

You're trying to spice things up in the bedroom because, why not, right? You read in one of those "ten ways to have more fun in bed" articles that role-playing with your partner could really take things up a notch. But sometimes, what seems like a saucy idea at the time goes completely off the rails. Canadian TikTok star Josh Richards created a hilarious clip where he exemplifies all the ways a night of role-playing could fail. In the clip, entitled "When Role Play Goes Wrong," a woman clad in lingerie nervously proposes, "Do you wanna try, like, role play tonight?"

Josh agrees but admits he's not sure where to begin. She takes the reins, and things immediately get complicated. "It's 1910, New York," she suggests. "I'm a little orphan girl, and you're the shopkeeper." (He then confirms she's at least of legal age.) "I've been stealing some thumbtacks from you, only this time, oops, I've been caught." It gets worse from there and devolves into a plan involving the evasion of the orphanage's "madam."


Unfortunately, Josh's character then gets a bit too literal. "Why would you have so many thumbtacks?"

She tries again. "How 'bout this? You're a chef in France, and I'm a rat with dreams of becoming a culinary master." Josh, rightfully, points out that this is the plot of the Pixar movie Ratatouille. After she tries to convince him, he says, "I'm not sure the whole rat sex thing is really doing it for me."

Totally fair.

Many on Reddit also seem eager to share their hilariously "unique" role-playing misfires. In what seems to be an earnest question on a subreddit thread, someone asks for examples of odd and outrageous role-play ideas. But for the most part, the comment section does not take this request seriously.

All the President's Men

File:Mountrushmore.jpg - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org

One suggests trying different presidents to get your partner in the mood. "Four nights in a row. Each night you dress up as a different president from Mt. Rushmore."

Secret Probation

Hungry Pizza GIF by Pudgy PenguinsGiphy

Another gets extremely detailed and really hates glitter. "I’m a pizza delivery man, she’s VERY hungry. I deliver a pizza to her house, but it turns out she doesn’t have any cash to tip. No worries, she’s got something else for me. She invites me in, and I watch her slowly and methodically use some popsicle sticks and glue to make a snowflake.

I’m really bored, but she tells me I can’t leave. Not yet. She then proceeds to sprinkle glitter all over the snowflake. I hate glitter. She doesn’t care. She wants me to be upset. This is all a game to her. Finally, after two hours of watching her craft, I’ve had enough. I can’t take it anymore, so I leave. But unfortunately, I find out I’m fired because I took so long on this delivery, and my boss said I was already on secret probation.

The Portly Meteorologist

Live Tv Radar GIF by The Weather ChannelGiphy

This one gets complicated and eventually is ruined by the misplacement of an important item. "Portly meteorologist Doug borrows money from his widowed neighbor Tammy to pay for a broken fence caused by his estranged son's fiancée Margie, who has a penchant for drinking while operating a child's motorized big wheel. Doug falls on hard times and realizes he cannot pay back his debt and must make things right with more untraditional means of restitution. Tammy, while on the older side of Doug, still maintains a feisty demeanor despite being legally blind. To pay back her errors, Margie is called upon to film the encounter with a vintage JVC home movie recorder purchased from Goodwill. But first, she must locate the missing charging cable."

And of course, comedian Gary Gulman’s bit on the matter speaks for itself.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com