If you are in your 20’s, READ: At the age of 20, people expect you to graduate college. I did.
And this was the only thing I did “right” according to their expectations.
By 22, they expect you to get a stable job. I didn’t. I even quit my profession. I didn’t even have a working experience.
By the age of 23, they expect you to have a good position in your company. I didn’t.
I married the “wrong” person instead. Wrong because he was broke, no stable job like me. I also got pregnant.
By the age of 25, they expect you to get a decent guy and marry him if you want to.
I was already married for 2 years with the wrong guy, still unemployed. And oh, we have a 1-year-old child.
By the age of 29, they expect you to buy a house or a car. You are very lucky and blessed if you can afford to buy your own home or car at this point of your life. If you don’t have it yet, and your fellow 29-year-olds have cars or homes, you feel depressed.
You wonder what you did wrong and what they did right. This is the moment in life when you regret everything you did or didn’t do.
Now, I’m 29 years old. I have never been employed. But I have travelled to approximately 12 countries.
Been to Korea 3x, Hongkong 2x, Fukuoka and Tokyo Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, Thailand, Macau, Australia, Taiwan, etc.
My “broke” exboyfriend who is now my husband, is the CEO of our company. We are running 5 branches of our coffee shops, 2 milk tea shops, 3 online stores.
Few years ago, he failed in all his job interviews but now he has trained hundreds of employees under our company.
We have no time in or time out. We declare holiday everytime we want to.
He treats me to decent dates everyday. This broke guy, gave me everything and bought me everything I wanted to buy.
People collect things, I collect stamps. Stamps on my passport. I collect memories to cherish.
I choose to invest my money in travel, food, in making my family and love ones happy by giving them a wonderful life the best way I could.
Because at the end of the day, when you are in your death bed, you won’t bring your material things with you, but the memories you have. Live life without regrets.
For almost 9 years, I failed people’s expectations. Not because I was stubborn or disobedient.
But because I followed my heart, my passion. I have my own sets of goals and standards. I have my own dreams.
Do not live according to people’s expectations. Live by your own terms. Live your own timeline.
Enjoy life. Don’t be stressed when you feel left behind. People have their time lines, you have yours.
No matter what you do, people will judge you anyway. Do what you love and live life to the fullest. Never let other people control you.