OPEMIPO ADEBANJO'S 40 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU TURN 40!

PRELUDE: Get angry at someone or something once in a long while. You need this especially if you are a usually quiet person. Let your rage be like a thunderstorm, usually over in five minutes.

 

(1) Find your purpose. This is one of the most important things in life. Ask yourself, ”Why am I here? What am I supposed to do?” One of the hardest questions to answer, but once you do, life becomes easier.

(2) Write your mission statement. Summarise in one sentence what you are all about. This would take some serious soul searching.

(3) Fall in love. Though not compulsory,this is one of the most beautiful things that could happen to a person in life. Be it a person, your hobby or an activity; when you fall in love, life takes on a whole new meaning.

(4) Play the fool. Most of us do not like this one but there is rarely a human being this won’t happen to. You need to play the fool to know who and what to trust next time. If it doesn’t happen by default, make it happen.

(5) Do something so crazy, it leaves you breathless.

(6) Do something new frequently. Take time to step away from the familiar. No matter how useless this new activity might seem, just do it.

(7) Get close to God. You’ll need him, as most of your important life decisions will be made before 40. Who better to lead you than the one who knows the future?

(8) Travel frequently, if you can afford it. The world is like a book and the man who doesn’t travel reads only one page. It may be only the neighbouring country or state you can afford, but do it anyway. Travelling broadens your horizons.

(9) Eat what’s not yours. Buy ,cook and savour meals from other places…even the strangest ones. Even nature loves variety, who wants a one-way palate?

(10) Create your own library. Accumulate great books. Books set a man free from the chains that hold his mind bound. Books are also good legacies to leave for your children.

(11) Do something that scares you. The best way to overcome your fears is to face them. Hate swimming, scared of heights or you just don’t like making public speeches? Life begins at the end of your comfort zone, you’ve got to dare.

(12) Fight for a cause. Pick something close to your heart and stand for it.

(13) Rage. Get angry at someone or something once in a long while. You need this especially if you are a usually quiet person. Let your rage be like a thunderstorm, usually over in five minutes. You need this to let go of your rigidity and tension.  (Disclaimer: Anger shouldn’t be a way of life).

(14) Fail. The lessons learned from failure are invaluable.

(15) Have a mentor. Choose someone who has been where you are and who is already doing what you want to do and study under them. A mentor brings the gift of experience to the table.

(16) Do something for someone who can never pay you back. Do it to a stranger or do it anonymously to your friends. What does this do for you? It keeps your feel-good juices flowing and brings good karma your way.

(17) Forgive. Many people will wrong you before the age of forty. You have to forgive them, not for them but for you. You don’t want the weight of unforgiveness to keep pulling you down.

(18) Achieve one thing so big that you couldn’t do it alone. It would require the help of others. It is a test of how well you can sell your vision to others.

(19) Change your circle of friends once in a while. If you’re in a circle and you’re not growing or your friends aren’t helping you in anyway. It is time to let go.

(20) Be alone for at least a month. Shut the crowd out. Great things are birthed in solitude and you need to start listening to your own inner voice. Move away from your usual friends, family and environment for a month. Try out your dream job. You know that thing you’ve always wanted to become? It may be too late, but do something close to it as you can get. It may not be a full-time gig, the most important thing is trying it out

(21) Produce something from scratch and sell it. It may be a product or a service; just to see how good a businessman you are. In life, we sell all the time anyway. So this might be a good training ground for you.

(22) Splurge. Pick a good time to spoil yourself silly and do it. Do whatever catches your fancy, just make sure you feel like a king/ queen at the end.

(23) Write a letter to the future you. Write your hopes, dreams, what you feel and what  you’re thinking. You’ll be surprised when you read that letter again in 10 years.

(24) Listen to music …a lot! Music is food for the soul. Have a sophisticated and diverse musical library .Try out genres that you aren’t familiar with, you’ll be surprised.

(25) Do something that makes you feel like a child again. Make it silly, playful, innocent or weird. Play in the rain, have a water fight with loved ones, or sing loudly in a car though people are watching you.

(26) Read The Secret by Rhonde Wallace.It’s a book I personally recommend everyone should read before they turn 40. More amazing, the stuff inside that book works!

(27) Challenge your routine once in a while. Routine makes life boring. Routine is one of the major causes of stress and tension in our lives. Get out of bed one day and do something that’s unplanned throughout that day. It makes life more exciting.

(28) Document your life. Don’t only keep photo albums of those special moments, create videos too. In this age of social media, a blog would do. You’ll be able to look back at those moments with a smile when you’re older.

(29) Start saving actively for retirement. If you have plans to be a Bill Gates, the time to execute is now.

(30) Know something about everything. Information is king. Learn everything even when you don’t need to. You never know when you might need it. It also makes you a sophisticated person who can get along with all kinds of people from different countries.

(31) Break your own record. Compete with yourself

(32) Make a new friend from a different race or a different religion than you.The hallmark of intelligent people is that they are more tolerating of different views than theirs

(33) Plant and grow something. Any plant or flower that catches your fancy would do. It takes patience to tend to something that long. It is also a metaphor for your goals and dreams. Plant and tend them every day.

(34) Read a Holy Book from start to finish.

(35) Have a baby. This might be obvious to some, but not all of us want to have children. A child just does something to you, even if it’s not yours. One look into their wide innocent eyes, a tug of their chubby little hands and you’re hooked. And of course, you have to be a role model to them. What better way to live your life shey?

(36) Climb a mountain or hill, and when you’re at the top, scream “Woohoo! I’m on top of the world!” That’s my favourite scene in Titanic. LOL! Seriously, it’s good exercise and it increases your ability to stick to something until you achieve it. Be warned, you’ll arrive at the top breathless.

(37) Learn to play an instrument.  Not only has it been proven to improve your IQ, it’s an exciting challenge to take up. It’s usually harder after the age of twenty. Been on my guitar lessons for years but I still love it.

(38) Do something calming or relaxing like meditation. You’ll need this in the tough times.

(39) Write a song. You may not be the model song writer and the song may be whack but it helps your creativity. In life, you need a lot of creativity.

(40) That ends my list of 40 things you should do before you turn 40.I hope you enjoyed it.
—————————-

Opemipo Adebanjo is a writer, columnist, social media lover and boundary mover. She blogs at www.opesays.com and tweets from @opesays