On his sixty-eight birthday, Kevin Kelly decided to give his young adult children some advice.
To his surprise, he had more to say than he thought, and he kept going until he had about 450 bits of advice he wished he'd known when he was younger. Timeless knowledge, advice he have heard from others mixed with his own experience.
Here are my favorite advice from Kevin's book which I may pass on to my children one day.
- Don't be afraid to ask a question that may sound stupid, because 99% of the time everyone else is thinking of the same question and is too embarrassed to ask it.
- The best way to learn something is to try to teach what you know.
- Habit is far more dependable than inspiration. Make progress by making habits. Don't focus on getting into shape. Focus on becoming the kind of person who never misses a workout.
- Perhaps the most counterintuitive truth of the universe is that the more you give to others, the more you will get. Understanding this is the beginning of wisdom.
- In all things - except love - start with the exit strategy. Prepare for the ending. Almost anything is easier to get into than out of.
- It is much easier to change how you think by changing your behavior than it is to change your behavior by changing how you think. Act out the change you seek.
- To succeed once, focus on the outcome; to keep succeeding, focus on the process that makes the outcome.
- The purpose of listening is not to reply, but to hear what is not being said.
- To get better at speaking, watch a recording of yourself speaking. It is shocking and painful, but an effective way to improve.
- Pay attention to who you are around when you feel your best. Be with them more often.
- Reading to your children regularly is the best school they will ever get.
- The biggest lie we tell ourselves is "I don't need to write this down because I will remember it".
- That thing that made you weird as a kid could make you great as an adult - if you don't lose it.
- When a child asks an endless string of "Why?" questions, the smartest reply is "I don't know, what do you think?"
- To write about something hard to explain, write a detailed letter to a friend about why it is so hard to explain and you will have a great first draft.
- To have a great trip, head toward an interest rather than to a place. Travel to passions rather than destinations.
- The natural state of all possessions is to need repair and maintenance. What you own will eventually own you. Choose selectively.
- You can be whatever you want to be, so be the person who ends meetings early.
"Excellent Advice for Living" by Kevin Kelly
