Beautimy: Don't be brandwashed, be brandyou.

“Your twenties are always an apprenticeship, but you don’t always know what for.” - Jan Houtema

Another great answer on Quora that young people should take note because in the first 30 years of your life you make your habits, and then your habits make you:

Between 16 and about 30, life gives us incredible energy.  After that, we have less energy and less time.  As Franklin said, “Do ye love life?  Then do not waste time, for that is the stuff life is made of.”  You see, one of the great lessons of Western Civ is to delay gratification in hopes of a better reward down the road. Hence, the many compelling time-wasters of our day (mindless internet surfing, video games, texting, endless social media use, porn, bad relationships etc.,) –these are all a slow drip of poison for the life you hope to have. You can never get back those many hours wasted.

What should one do instead?  Read, study and build skills.  Listen to old people.  Hone your ability to concentrate. You are now in the ‘habit-forming’ time of your life, that will carry forward for many years. Guard your integrity: your word, the quality of your friendships, the interests you allow yourself. Be fully in the moment; life is more interesting that way.

Brain-building - If you can’t concentrate and read a book for a few hours, work on it anyway.  Until at least the age of 25, the brain is still developing its habits.  Starve its craving for the video games you play, and feed its ability to focus on books or a study topic.  This gets much easier with practice.

Great reminder about one of the key determinants for success in a Forbe’s article written by Josh Linkner on grit:

Do you take personal responsibility instead of blaming others? Do you set clear goals and exhibit determination, albeit others’ beliefs? Do you exude self-confidence about the challenges stemming from “figuring it out”? There are innumerable challenges that come with entrepreneurship, no matter your intelligence, wealth or network pedigree. Because of the hurdles you’ll need to jump, a healthy dose of grit is a crucial trait, for any leader.

• A clear goal
• Determination despite others’ doubts
• Self-confidence about figuring it out
• Humility about knowing it doesn’t come easy
• Persistence despite fear
• Patience for the small stuff that obscures the path
• A code of ethics they live by
• Flexibility in the face of roadblocks
• A capacity for human connection and collaboration
• A recognition that accepting help does not equate to weakness
• A focus and appreciation of each step in the journey
• An appreciation of other people’s grit
• A loyalty that never sacrifices connections along the way
• An inner strength that brings them to their goal

Here is what passion feels like, as Mike Hagen so eloquently puts:

The Feeling

You’ll know exactly what passion is when you have it. It’s what you’re thinking about when you’re waiting in line or driving your car. It’s what you’re dreaming about when your head hits the pillow at night. It’s what you’re doing any spare moment you have.

If it’s a startup you’re passionate about, you wake up every morning, bouncing off the walls excited to get to work. Days just fly by. At the end of each day you have a hard time leaving the office, not because there’s a lot of work (though there always is), but because it doesn’t feel like work at all. You love it. And when you’re home, you’re working. And if you’re not working, you’re thinking about working. Your mind feels like it’s about to explode with excitement. Your body shakes with optimism. There aren’t enough hours in the day. Your friends/significant other have to drag you away and force you to eat, sleep, exercise or hang out. It consumes you. It’s life and it’s *the* life. It’s a fantastic feeling.

We got one shot at this thing called life. Follow your passions today. Tomorrow might never arrive.

But you don’t need someone else to tell you how it feels like, you have to experience it yourself.

When written in Chinese, the word “crisis” is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity.” John F. Kennedy