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1. People communicate most honestly through jokes. Pay attention to them.

2. If you can't refuse something, it owns you.

3. Fear of being cringe will stop you living fully. Get over it.

4. Don't take criticism from someone you wouldn't take advice from.

5. Expect no applause for telling the truth. Sometimes doing the right thing costs you – friendships, comfort, peace. But always pay the price without question.

6. Whatever scenario you're in, just act like you belong.

7. The lazy person works twice as hard.

8. Curiosity is a superpower.

9. Honesty without kindness is brutality. Default to kindness. Though know when to be firm.

10. Life never meets your youthful expectations. As an adult, you need to learn to find joy nonetheless.

11. Death can come any day. Every day is a gift.

12. Adults make a lot more sense when you realise they're just children in big bodies.

13. Bears don't need motivation to hunt salmon for 12 hours straight. But put them in a circus and they need constant prodding to wave at an audience once. Motivation is a human problem – because we don't fit our 21st century environment. You must not be a circus bear.

14. Humans struggle to mentally combine their "now" self and their "future" self. So treat your future self as someone you love and want to see thrive. Today's laziness is tomorrow's burden. Do them a favour.

15. The obstacle is the way. Get used to it. Learn to love it.

16. Books are a cheat code – many of life's problems were solved and written down long before you were born. But reading is half the equation. Without action in the real world you get limited results. Action backed by theory is a potent mix.

17. The opinion of the person who rarely offers it is listened to more closely.

18. A free-thinker's beliefs are unlikely to align neatly with any political party. If your beliefs align 75% with your political party, you're not free-thinking – you're just trying to fit in with your tribe. Super-forecasters – the people who predict events better than anyone else – change their minds constantly. They update their views the moment new information appears. Do the same with every belief you hold.

19. Make your own religion. List your strongest principles. Become a devout worshipper. Update the doctrine when you learn better.

20. Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. Be wary of ideologies that require buying into the absurd.

21. The hunt is the whole point. The kill is just bait. If you're chasing money, status, or objects, you'll be disappointed when you catch them. Chase family, growth, love – and the catch might actually be sweeter than the chase.

22. If you're a man, one of your hardest battles may be not giving in to sexual urges that cause harm to others. History is littered with otherwise entirely brilliant men who succeeded at everything but this. You must succeed. Edit: This one seems controversial. I will write a follow-up post explaining it with more nuance. For now, I'll just say: I am NOT on the side of cheaters and rapists – quite the opposite. Nor am I saying all men cheat and sexually assault. I think my original draft of this entry had more nuance. You can read it here.

23. There are parts of ourselves that are changeable and parts that are unchangeable. So much unhappiness comes from not knowing which is which.

24. One day your parents' names will be spoken more often in memories than in conversations. Every word shared with them now is a gift. Don't wait. Create a recurring calendar entry for coffee with your Dad. Visit your Mum every Friday. Force it. Squeeze it in. It will become one of your biggest regrets if you don't.

25. Keep notes on everyone you love. Their likes, dislikes, how their brain works. When they mention something they want, write it down. You'll never struggle with a gift again.

26. Sex is overrated. Sex with someone you love is underrated.

27. You can get more done in 5 minutes and 1 year than you think. That dirty kitchen? That work task you've been avoiding? Set a timer for 5 minutes and try. You'll surprise yourself. And that massive project or body transformation you've been putting off? Just write out a plan and go for it. Again, you'll surprise yourself.

28. Some people are profoundly broken – usually from life's harsh trials. Give yourself permission to remove them from your orbit. Their healing requires years of professional help, more than well-meaning friends and family can achieve.

29. Your health is the most important thing. It's a mind-numbing cliché because it's undeniably true. One day – probably somewhere between 28 and 38 – you'll wake up and just feel 'off'. A bit sore. A bit tired. That feeling will never leave you. Be grateful for your youth while you have it.

30. Leading a healthy life is simple: sleep well, exercise three times a week, have an active social life, eat a variety of vegetables and whole foods, avoid sugar, processed foods, alcohol and drugs. That's 90%. Everything else is optimisation.

31. The world is always on the brink. At any given moment, you can point to dozens of reasons the world is 'messed up'. It always is. It always has been. Don't use that as an excuse for despair.

32. War is always potentially around the corner. Doesn't matter how "advanced" your society is. And remember if a war does break out, take the consensus on how long it will last and multiply it by 20.

33. Start contributing as much as you can possibly afford to your pension – even if you're 16. At the very least contribute what your employer matches. More if you can – 10% is good. This is likely the best financial decision you'll make.

34. Getting a great deal on something you don't need costs more than overpaying for something you do.

15 Bonus Lessons

1. Reading history teaches you that events are cyclical. Most problems, confusion, and fear come from people who haven't learnt this yet.

2. The days, weeks and even months go by slowly. But the years go by fast. Before you know it you'll be dead or 60.

3. Humans are almost as impulsive as dogs. Don't keep a cupboard full of snacks.

4. If you're a non-conformist in thought, be a conformist in dress. Offset one with the other.

5. Listen to your favourite music regularly. Your soul needs it.

6. Bathrooms are more dangerous than you think. They're slippery and full of hard surfaces – be careful.

7. The time is going to pass anyway, so why not live well and be happy?

8. There’s a reason most religions and cultures built fasting and renunciation into their traditions: the power isn’t in avoiding bad things, but in the exercise of restraint itself. Willpower is a muscle, and abstinence is the gym.

9. Seek not just knowledge, but the wisdom to question it. Challenge what you read; think, debate, and write to refine your beliefs. Learn to recognise biases and errors in thinking. Opt for reasoned understanding over mere information consumption.

10. Stock picking is gambling light. Do it in small amounts, for fun, knowing you'll eventually lose.

11. The wealthy utilise debt to make more money. The poor abuse debt to lose money. Taking on debt can be a useful tool, but outside of large essential purchases like homes and cars or for sensible business investing, it’s best avoided.

12. Don’t be tricked or sucked in by the fact that “candidates for political for office with obvious character flaws seen more real than bureaucrats with impeccable credentials” ("Skin in the Game"). People will vote for awful politicians with big mouths because they “tell it like it is” and “at least they’re honest”. Don’t be fooled — boring, considerate politicians are a good thing.

13. People are naturally peculiar and often their actions defy explanation. Unless they're harming themselves or others, learn to accept their inherent oddities. Trying to get to the bottom of quirks is a maddening exercise. Avoid it.

14. Eating meat is quite clearly immoral. Unless it will be detrimental to your health, eat as little as possible.

15. Any well-functioning society should have optimistic young people, and cynical old people. If it’s the other way around, something’s wrong.