On the 1st of July 2020, I unfortunately turned 25. I saw it coming but it was still a shock. When I imagined 25, I saw my life in a completely different direction. Nonetheless here we are. The damage has been done. The 25 years may not be what I expected but it has been a great learning experience.

Here are 25 life lessons that I learnt:

1) DO NOT tie your identity to your job

2) Money is important but it is not the MOST important

3) Surround yourself with those that you love

4) Network. You never know where it may take you

5) Also- always try something new. You never know where that might take you

6) Always carry a spare tire in your car

7) Ensure you have savings- for a rainy day, for retirement. Just make sure you have money available.

8) No matter your best intentions, life rarely ever goes as planned

9) Do NOT make decisions when you are emotional (unless those decisions are food-related like what to buy to make yourself feel better)

10) Also, do not make purchasing decisions when you are emotional

11) Leave work at work. There’s a reason you have “working hours”. And leave the office on time

12) If it doesn’t affect your pay, don’t let it affect your day

13) No, you do not need more books (but buying a few more doesn’t hurt anyone)

14) You don’t go to the gym to go to the gym. You go to the gym for the feeling you get after the gym

15) Take time out for yourself no matter how busy life gets

16) Keep moving forward (thank you, Disney)

17) Tea is always a good idea. So is any warm beverage

18) Live within your means. Live below your means if possible. This is especially relevant in the Corona era

19) Time is the most valuable resource and it’s one you can never get back. Use it wisely

20) Stressing about something accomplishes nothing (though in my case, it keeps my brain occupied so I allow it within reason).

21) It is always a good idea to learn a new skill be it work-related or personal

22) Not everyone is going to like you. You are not R100. Some people don’t even like R100 (I am one of these people. R100 disappears too quickly. R1000 is a good amount).

24) A car is a deprecating asset (and a damn expensive one) so there’s no need to pay a ton of money on an expensive model especially if you don’t have that money.

25) Spend more on quality in the first place so you don’t end up having to pay more to replace something cheap (like when it comes to repairs for the above deprecating asset)

What lessons have you learnt in your time on Earth? I’d love to know below!

Back when I was a young, naïve college student I wrote a blog post about the importance of taking a mental health day. It’s funny because looking back, I was under the impression that all jobs allowed a mental health day. After all how could you be expected to function at a job if you’re not at your best? However, this is the real world and sometimes mental health days are just not an option.

A few days ago (a week to be accurate), I came home from work with a headache. This wasn’t unusual as I normally have headaches during the weekend (it’s my blog/study/writing time).

However by the time Monday rolled around, I didn’t feel any better. Plus I had my sinus acting up. By Wednesday, the pain was too bad and I eventually started crying before begging to be taken to the doctor.

I had a feeling I knew what the cause was but I hoped he could help. Nope. He decided it was a tension headache. From what little I knew, I knew tension headaches were stress-related. I didn’t know how not to stress. But I was in horrible pain and I was already behind on my studying.

I took medication and went to sleep, hoping to return to work on Thursday. No such luck. I woke up with an awful sore throat and my head still hurt. I dosed myself with large quantities of flu medication, home remedies and spent most of the day asleep. In fact I was only awake for 4 hours.

I felt horribly guilty and ashamed. I was behind on all of my work all because of a stupid headache.

I managed to rest enough that it was fine for me to return to work on Friday.

My head still occasionally hurts like hell but I’m trying to make a concentrated effort to remain calm and not stress (a difficult feat for someone with anxiety).

So the point of me sharing this story is simple. Learn to take a break. You don’t want your body deciding all of a sudden that it needs a break. Because trust me, your body will definitely pick the most inconvenient time possible/

In December 2016, I found a job teaching English online to Chinese students. I applied and waited impatiently for a response. I was convinced that this was it for me. The perfect job. I had the degree. I was a writer. There was no better job.

I made it through two series of interviews without any problem. The interviewer was impressed at my background with Media and writing as well as the fact that I had driven to the office the day before to ensure I didn’t have any issues finding the place.

Unfortunately when it came time for training, the interviewer (aka the manager of the teaching center) was NOT who I needed to impress.

The day after my interview was over, I received an email with a list of items I needed to purchase because the business had a dress code. So I headed to the nearest mall and purchased formal-wear in blue, black and white (colours that the business required).

Excited about my new job, I chatted to the sales lady who seemed to share my enthusiasm especially about the fact that this was not a call center job. I confided in her that I had been so worried that I would end up in a call center because it was so tough to find jobs.

Now remember, at this stage I had only been out of college for one month but sure, I was young and naive. I didn’t know much.

I turned up to training, uncomfortable in my formal clothing and slightly nauseous. I hadn’t slept the night before and was exhausted.

And that was when I met her. The head trainer was a no-nonsense (and possibly no patience) woman. She was tough and demanding and assured us that not all of us would make it through training let alone the second day.

I was scared but I still felt pretty confident. Hello, girl with years of writing experience? English was practically the only talent I had.

But as they laid down rules after rules, I started to have doubts. I was about an hour into training when I phoned my mother in tears. I wasn’t sure I could handle the pressure.

Let me go over some of the rules for you: 1) You must use make-up (understandable as you’re on camera), 2) you have to use the colours required by the business, 3) you absolutely cannot take toilet breaks until it’s your designated time and 4) you cannot tell the students “no” or that they’re incorrect.

This last thing drove me crazy. When we practiced our lessons, I was marked down for things I did wrong but never given any guidance on what I could have done right. It was just “don’t do this, don’t do that”.

Looking back it was clear from the get-go that the trainers didn’t like me. It sounds petty but I remember the trainer asking me what did it mean if a girl had her a good head on her shoulders and then shouting the question back at me when I was unable to articulate my answer properly to her.

At the end of the day, they called me into the office and told me that they didn’t think the job was for me. I was too quiet, too much of an introvert. They told me to go try something else and I could come back when I had more work experience.

I was emotional. I teared up. I asked them if they needed me to complete the rest of the training (there was an hour left) or if I should leave immediately.

They assured me I could leave immediately. I thanked them for their time, said goodbye to the other trainees (who didn’t believe that I was leaving and thought I was joking), cried a bit in my car and drove myself home.

I was sad that I didn’t fit in but I knew if I had, it would have been a disaster. From what little I did see from the work environment, it looked awful.

Credit cards have a really bad reputation with most people. More often than not, they are seen as a gateway to mountains of debt and a bad credit rating. However there are actually some perks to having a credit card as long as you play your cards right (see what I did there?). Here are 5 reasons why you should consider having a credit card:

1) To build a credit rating- You might not care about your credit rating now however when it comes time for you to take out a loan, your credit rating is a huge factor. Starting to build a credit rating as soon as possible certainly won’t hurt. I have a single credit card but it has still helped my credit score.

2) To have extra spending money- Now I don’t mean spending recklessly. I mean in a genuine emergency. There have been months where this emergency has ranged from “I forgot my bank card and need to purchase something” or “a genuine unplanned expense” but the credit card has always come to my rescue in both these cases. Having a credit card as a back-up is great provided that you don’t overdo it. Which brings me to my next point.

3) To learn responsibility- You absolutely HAVE to be responsible when you have a credit card. Once you start owing more than you can pay, that is when the trouble begins. Try to only spend an amount you know you can cover once you get paid. 

4) To have  a “credit card story- Everyone has a story (most worse than others) about how they got their first credit card and what they did with it. Most of my friends warned me against getting a credit card since they blew through it like crazy and ended up in debt that they are still paying off in their late twenties. This has served as a great lesson and warning to me so I avoid making the same mistake. My credit card story is basically that I’ve had it for two years and never ever had to pay back a huge amount.

5) Swiping is more convenient- It is safer to carry a card than cash especially when you’re the only one with the pin. I usually carry my credit card when I know it’s not feasible for me to go walking around with cash on my person.

Do you have a credit card? What’s your credit card story? I’d love to know below!

I love eating out. It’s like a weakness of mine. Bad day? Grab take-out. Good day? Pop in to a nice restaurant. Pay day? SPLURGE on a meal.

This was especially tough for me when I first started work. It didn’t take long for me to realise that a huge chunk of my salary was being spent on food. At the time I told myself it was fine since I was a temp work and I didn’t know how long I would have an income for. However since then I have picked up a few tips to help me save money when eating out (so that I can eat out again. What? I didn’t say that I stopped the habit completely).

1) Split meals- When my friends and I go out for lunch we always split meals. Usually restaurant portions are bigger than what we are used to so we can usually make one meal last between two or three of us.

2) Take the extras home- Alternatively if you ordered too much food you can always take the extras home so that you have food for another meal.

3) Order a starter- Starters are cheaper than mains and sometimes they are just as filling. Order a starter if you are a bit light on cash but still want to eat out.

4) Drink water- Water is free. Also I’m going through a phase where all I drink is water for some reason so for me, water is free and tasty. (Tip- water will fill you up less than cooldrink so that you are able to eat more)

5) Choose specials- Some places have specials that you just cannot refuse. Sign up for mailing lists of your favourite spots so you can be informed when there’s a special.