One of the commenters on my Facebook wrote that they (youths) are waiting for me to contest for Governorship when it is the turn of my zone in 7 years to show me pepper. I laughed at his ignorance.
If he is between 25 – 30 years now, in 7 years he would be 32 – 37 years old. He would have wasted his golden decades waiting for godot. That statement reminded me of my own mistakes in not maximising my golden decades. If you are in your 20s now and not a champion or top performer in sports, music, arts, academia, and business, you will likely never make it to the top again.
If you are in your 30s (the old age of youth) and you are not in mid-career and on the path to management level, it is almost certain the boat has left you. Mid-30s is the last chance to make it big (like Messi).
Don’t waste your youth abusing people, forming “we, the youths”, you are on your own and responsible for your future and outcomes. The foolish thinking that expressing opinion as certainties on social media is a sign of courage or knowledge is usually an advertisement of ignorance and a sign that you are on the unalterable path to inconsequence and impending failure.
I support the idealism of youth and the accompanying activism at the spring of life. Those who use it well seek to change things by doing. Using the boundless energy of youth to act with courage, to travel uncharted oceans and unfurl the banner of conquest in new territories.
The wise youth is curious, constantly learning, and focused on finding gaps to fill, honing their skills, utilizing the energy of youth to climb mountains, and working to change the world albeit incrementally.
Focusing on the world as it is and not the world as it should be, will liberate you from the ease of the life of a daydreamer to a doer of deeds.
Below is a list of successful people across different sectors. What they share in common is that their path to success started in their 20s. It is the rule and of course, there are exceptions.
Magnus Carlsen, 32, World No 1 Chess player, became No 1 at age 20
Iga Swiatek, 21, World number 1 Women’s singles WTA player, won the French Open at 19
Kylian Mbappe, 24, part of a World Cup winning team at 19
Carlos Alcaraz, 19, number 1 Men’s single ATP tennis player
Rory Daniel McIlroy, 33 ,number 1 golfer won his first championship at 22, and by 25 had won the four major championships
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 33, became US Congresswoman at 29
Stanley Tang and Andy Fang, worth $1.1bn and $1.2bn both 29, cofounded the food delivery app DoorDash in 2013 when they were 20 years
Chinua Achebe was 28 years old when he wrote Things Fall Apart
Chimamanda Adichie was 26 years when she wrote Purple Hibiscus and 29 when she wrote Half of a Yellow Sun
Warren Buffett was 25 years old when he set up his first Investment Partnership
Bill Gate was 23 when he started Microsoft Corporation
Mark Zukerberg was 19 when he started Facebook
Don’t waste your youth consuming and parroting the opinion of others as gospel. It is like walking on crutches while ignoring your healthy limbs.
Listen, consider, examine and act. The world is not for talkers, it is for doers.
I am because I do.
Osita Chidoka
December 2022
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