Solomon, Congrats!

What advice do older folks have for younger members? I'm 34, so I wouldn't say I classify as young, but also not old enough to give good advice...

In three hours I’ll be 50 years old.

I’ve started Go very late - at the age of 36 - and, having a job, there wasn’t that much time or mental energy to really become strong. For decades now I’ve “made a living” and built up savings and I’m aware that fewer days lie ahead of me than behind me. I haven’t even started to find out how far I can get and feel it’s high time to concentrate on Go more deeply.

Pretty much the same advice that I’d give myself today - but it’s not so easy to follow, not then and not now.

Don’t waste time and money on things that don’t really matter. But you have to think deeply to find out what the things that matter actually are. For me, expensive holidays, computers, restaurants etc. are not it. To break out of the consumption spiral, it helps to want those things that you already have.

Don’t live other people’s lives. They will often give you seemingly well-intended advice that will keep you in the mainstream and discourage you from doing what they themselves weren’t able to do. In the end you’re on your own. So live in a way that you can be happy with looking back in a few decades.

Stay away from toxic people. There are people who can inspire you and lift you up, and there are people who subtly put you down.

If you avoid those three mistakes it’s already a pretty good life.

[…] Now I just have to figure out what matters

:grumpy: […] At 60, I'm now entitled to be a grumpy old man. […]

Fourth: Avoid people who don't like cats.

You know, you don't need to be old to be a grumpy old man, all is in the attitude ! ...