10 Things You Realize In Your Mid 30’s

I recently officially entered into my mid 30’s.  Yaayy…said no one, ever.  Getting older is good to a certain extent.  Then there comes a time when getting older just plain sucks.  Your mid 30’s doesn’t quite enter the realm of suck just yet, but there are some things you will come to realize by the time it hits.  Here’s 10 things you realize in your mid 30’s.

1.  YOU CANT EAT ANYTHING YOU WANT ANYMORE

You may have come to this realization years ago but chose to ignore it.  In your mid 30’s however, there’s no way to avoid it anymore.  Your metabolism was great in high school, maybe OK in your 20’s, but now it’s showing its age.  Seems like just the smell of a cheesy cheese burger and fries is enough to make you put on 5 lbs.

Can you still splurge on meals and a treat every once in a while?  Yes and you most definitely should!  You just know now that balance is more important than ever and being mindful of what you put in your body will pay dividends down the road.

2. THERE ARE A FEW MORE GREY HAIRS ON YOUR HEAD

1, 2, 3…should probably stop counting or could be here all day.  You’ll notice your body is aging and it might start to show a bit more.  A few more grey hairs every year, a couple more wrinkles here and there.  By now you’ve started to come to terms with aging and are beginning to be OK with it.  You’re finally comfortable in your own body and with yourself.

They say with age comes wisdom, and now you’re starting to know what that means.  Or maybe you’ve now just become a believer of the saying to make yourself feel a little bit better about getting older.  Either way your body is growing with age, just as you are, and any growth is always good.

3.  HANGOVERS NOW LAST THE ENTIRE NEXT DAY

A night of drinking now requires a full day of recovery.  Not sure if there’s something in the body that breaks when you get older but damn, next day hangovers are now absolutely death.  Maybe you just don’t drink as often as you used to and when you do, you do a little too much.  You know what’s coming the next day if you plan on drinking the night before, and this makes you a little more cautious.

In your mid 30’s being hung over for a day simply does not fly.  You have things to do, bills to pay, mouths to feed!  You know how important pre and post drinking rituals are to ensuring functionality the next day.  Get careless and pay for it the next day, and maybe even the morning after that as well.

4.  STAYING UP PAST 11PM ON A WEEKEND IS CONSIDERED LATE

Long gone are the days when you could go out on a weeknight and be on time for work the next day.  (Let’s be real though I could never even do that when I was younger, whom I’m kidding.)  Sleep is probably your best friend now.  Without it, you feel tired, cranky, and lethargic.  Just like a baby who is put on a strict sleep schedule by their parents, you now adopt a strict self-imposed sleep schedule to ensure you’re a functioning member of society during the day.

Getting to bed before 10 pm on a work night is a must while staying up on a weekend past 11 pm is almost impossible.  Unfortunately it gets harder to get quality sleep the older one gets.  Makes you wonder if all the sleep you had forgone when you were younger was worth it? At the time, probably, but now sleep is king!

5.  YOU’RE PROBABLY NOT WHERE YOU THOUGHT YOU’D BE AT 35+

When you we’re in high school you probably thought anyone who was 35 or older was an old bag of bones.  By the time you would get that old, you’d have everything figured out.  You’d have the job you wanted, a house, and be married with a family, cruising though life.  Fast forward 20 or so years later and you’re in that job you never wanted, single as hell, no kids and might not want them anymore, and just barely making enough to get by.

Sigh.  That’s life sometimes.  Good thing you know what life is about now.  You might not be where you imagined you’d be, but you’re still working hard and smart to get there.  Unlike your 20’s where you feel like you have all the time in the world, your 30’s is where you finally get things done.  It may take you longer than you thought it would, but the lessons you learned a long the way have only added to your life experience, and wisdom.

6.  YOU’RE MAKING MORE THAN EVER, BUT SPENDING IT JUST AS FAST

It’s true that right now I’m making more than I’ve ever made in my life (which isn’t saying much unfortunately) but money just seems to be vanishing into thin air.  The saying the more you make the more you spend is real.  It’s not really a bad thing though, as long as you’re putting some of that money into savings and what not.  Reality is that with age comes more bills and responsibilities.  Housing costs, insurance, auto, kids, entertainment, travel etc. all add up.  It costs money to live but you’re getting used to that.

You know what you need to do to live the life you want and are working hard to make it happen.  Having a solid financial game plan is a must at this stage in life.  It’s never too late to get your finances in order.  I’ll try to make a post later on for anyone who’s looking to get their personal finances on the right track so stay tuned for that!

7.  BABIES AND KIDS ARE EVERYWHERE

When you hang out with your friends, it’s not just you and the guys or gals anymore.  It’s you, you friends, friend junior, and a bunch of mini-mi’s.  My sister is 2 years my elder and when I go to some of her get together’s it’s a whole different world.  Kids running around all over the place, babies crying, noise levels of 1 million decibels.  It’s true that people are having kids later on these days, but at some point, the dynamic changes.   Again it’s not for better or worse, it’s just change, the only thing constant in life.

Not everyone has kids or wants to have kids for that matter.  One thing that is true is that being the first or last in your group of friends to have kids always makes you the odd ball out.  Just remember to always be mindful of all people when hanging out.  The new parent may not have as much time to hang or will have to bring the kids along sometimes when you do.  The friend with no kids probably doesn’t want to go out and talk or hear about your kids or parenting stories the entire time you hang.  Just some food for thought.

8.  YOU’LL WONDER WHAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING WITH YOUR LIFE THE PAST 30 YEARS OR SO

Mid life crisis time? Not quite that age yet, but it is a natural time to stop and think about your life and how you got to where you are now.  Maybe you’ll look at your life and think, damn, I’ve done great!  Maybe you’ll look back and think, what have I been doing for the last 30 years?!  Either way, the mid 30’s is a time where some people will take a pause and reflect back.

There’s a lot of life left to live, hopefully, but it’s not guaranteed.  We all have goals and things we want to get done in our lifetime and the mid 30’s is a good time to reflect on what we’ve done so far.  You’ll probably get more done in the next 10 years than in any other time in your life so knowing what you want to do with the years is an important step.

9.  YOU STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO BEFORE YOU CAN RETIRE

A lot of us have probably been working or had many jobs by now.  In your mid 30’s you’re probably settling down into some type of career.  Freedom 55? That’s considered amazing if you can get there.  For the majority of people in your mid 30’s, it’s feels like it’s more freedom 75+ to never.

Luckily in today’s day and age, more and more people are able to find jobs that they enjoy to some extent.  Even jobs that could be your dream job feel like work sometimes.  Work is work, and no matter what you do (unless you were born into $$$) you’ll have to do a lot more of it before you can really kick back and relax.  Just remember to work hard, work smart, and don’t forget to enjoy it along the way.

10.  LIFE REALLY DOES PASS AT THE BLINK OF AN EYE

Where did all the time go?  Really?  Seems like yesterday I was a kid playing on the school playground and then boom!  I’m now a full blown big kid, just trying to get by.  Life passes quicker than the blink of an eye, and if you’re not careful, you might wake up one day old and grey thinking about all the things you didn’t do while you were younger.

Being in your mid 30’s is an exciting time.  You’ve done a lot and have so much more you can do in your future.  It’s really not a bad place to be, but you know that, so keep your head up, keep moving forward, be proud of who you’ve become and look ahead to all the possibilities that will come your way.

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Paolo