What Life Lessons Would You Teach Yourself?

Every time I watch the video below of Spock meeting Spock I wonder what I would do in that situation.

What sort of advice would I give to my younger self and would that hard headed youngster listen?

He had a proclivity for doing his own thing regardless of what others thought or suggested that hasn’t completely disappeared now either.

Honestly you would think that because I am talking about myself it would be easy to answer but it is more complex than you might think.

Or at least it is to me, that is because I am sitting here trying to figure out what advice to give.

Have I already encountered the greatest challenges and struggles of my life?

It makes a difference because I could tell the kid I used to be to just hang in there and know that while life may not always be easy, once you get past a certain point it is pretty smooth sailing.

That would be nice to say, now wouldn’t it.

What Life Lessons Would You Teach Yourself?

I’d like to say it is simple and that I know exactly what I would say.

Liked to say I would tell the kid to never give up and never surrender but then I would only be quoting Galaxy Quest and this is really something where I should use my own words.

So I need to think long and hard about what I’d say to make sure I was confident it was practical, useful and something that would resonate with him/me.

But if you pushed me to say something off the cuff it would be to remain confident in your own abilities to weather the storms, to take time to be present where you are and to remember your ability to keep going will always get your through.

Might be hokey, but sometimes hokey is truth.

Probably ought to tell my children to follow that same advice because it can work and is applicable.

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By Joshua Wilner

Hi, I am Josh Wilner and I am happy that you have decided to visit my corner of cyberspace. I am a writer/marketer/friend and family man. My professional background includes more than twenty years in working with businesses to help them do a better job of connecting with their existing and prospective customers. More specifically I have worked with companies of all sizes from the Fortune 500 to the new start up to help them build, develop and grow their social media and marketing plans. I love spending time with my family and friends. I enjoy music, reading, writing, playing sports and laughing.

4 comments

  1. TheJackB – Someone complained that this page doesn’t tell you what to expect to find here in this blog so I aim to rectify this with the next line. I am a father who writes about life, parenting, business, politics and fiction. I don’t use an editorial calendar because I don’t map out what I am going to write that far in advance. The primary focus will be on things that relate to children and parenting. But the nifty thing about that is that encompasses a wide range of things. Sometimes I work with companies on their PR/Marketing efforts. If they provide products or services I will disclose it. Here is an incomplete list of companies that I am currently or have recently worked with: Nintendo, Philips Norelco, Subway, Frigidaire and Mattel. Want to know more about me, keep reading. If I wanted to provide a professional description it would looks similar to this: Jack has a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from California State University Northridge. He has been writing for print and web publications for more than twenty years, covering a wide range of topics including: business, technology, parenting, politics, education, sports and religion. That is far too serious so I prefer to use something like: The Jack B. is a writer and author of 39 unpublished books and three screenplays. A former athlete and would be superhero he still fights for truth, justice and the American Way. Though he may look like a grown man, don’t fool yourself he is still a boy at heart. When he is not engaged in Walter Mitty like fantasies he is a husband, father and friend and blogs at TheJackB. Hmm…obviously I have since moved from Random Thoughts over to this place, but that is ok. This page is a work in progress which is a good description for me. I’ll probably tweak this on a regular basis so feel free to keep checking back in because you never know what might show up. I am a prolific writer and update frequently so don’t forget to scroll down the page to see what nugget of wisdom you just might have missed. Here is a short selection of posts to get you started. A Father Describes Parenting A Father’s Burden How Sister’s Helped to Train A Father of “Daddy’s Girl” Inside the Blogger’s Studio- A Dream, Er Nightmare The GermoPhobe What I Dream About I am In Love Becoming a Dad Dad’s Most Important Job A Decade of Dad Grandpa Donuts Why Your Post Sucks and Everyone Hates Your Blog A Letter To My Children- Things That Matter A Letter To My Children-2011 Dad Balances Fear Versus Reality Q&A With Daddy Blogger JackB Save The Last Dance For Me- 75 Years of Marriage An Uncertain Certainty Four Generations & A Wedding The Best Thing My Father Ever Said To Me 1 Foolproof Way To Become a Better Writer The Story Of A House- The Final Days He Died A Hero Twenty-Five Links That Will Make You A Better Writer/Blogger Thanks for coming by, I hope you like it. If you want to reach me use the contact form or try talk-to-jacknow-at-gmail-dotcom You can also find more information by clicking About Me and reading my profile there. Also, I encourage you to sign up for my newsletter using the form on the top right hand side of the page.
    Joshua Wilner says:

    I can relate to a bunch of this, especially the travel. I have done a bunch, but not nearly enough. The world offers so much and I just haven’t seen enough.

    But I am working on it.

    Had to laugh at your last line because that is precisely where I go when I think about all this. The hard headed fool got a lot right, but man he created chaos sometimes when he refused to listen.

    Reply

    1. I think that’s the part of the time-space continuum that Doc forgot to warn Marty about when he gave him such good instructions. “Don’t worry about talking to your younger self, because he won’t listen to you anyway!” 😉

      Reply
      1. TheJackB – Someone complained that this page doesn’t tell you what to expect to find here in this blog so I aim to rectify this with the next line. I am a father who writes about life, parenting, business, politics and fiction. I don’t use an editorial calendar because I don’t map out what I am going to write that far in advance. The primary focus will be on things that relate to children and parenting. But the nifty thing about that is that encompasses a wide range of things. Sometimes I work with companies on their PR/Marketing efforts. If they provide products or services I will disclose it. Here is an incomplete list of companies that I am currently or have recently worked with: Nintendo, Philips Norelco, Subway, Frigidaire and Mattel. Want to know more about me, keep reading. If I wanted to provide a professional description it would looks similar to this: Jack has a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from California State University Northridge. He has been writing for print and web publications for more than twenty years, covering a wide range of topics including: business, technology, parenting, politics, education, sports and religion. That is far too serious so I prefer to use something like: The Jack B. is a writer and author of 39 unpublished books and three screenplays. A former athlete and would be superhero he still fights for truth, justice and the American Way. Though he may look like a grown man, don’t fool yourself he is still a boy at heart. When he is not engaged in Walter Mitty like fantasies he is a husband, father and friend and blogs at TheJackB. Hmm…obviously I have since moved from Random Thoughts over to this place, but that is ok. This page is a work in progress which is a good description for me. I’ll probably tweak this on a regular basis so feel free to keep checking back in because you never know what might show up. I am a prolific writer and update frequently so don’t forget to scroll down the page to see what nugget of wisdom you just might have missed. Here is a short selection of posts to get you started. A Father Describes Parenting A Father’s Burden How Sister’s Helped to Train A Father of “Daddy’s Girl” Inside the Blogger’s Studio- A Dream, Er Nightmare The GermoPhobe What I Dream About I am In Love Becoming a Dad Dad’s Most Important Job A Decade of Dad Grandpa Donuts Why Your Post Sucks and Everyone Hates Your Blog A Letter To My Children- Things That Matter A Letter To My Children-2011 Dad Balances Fear Versus Reality Q&A With Daddy Blogger JackB Save The Last Dance For Me- 75 Years of Marriage An Uncertain Certainty Four Generations & A Wedding The Best Thing My Father Ever Said To Me 1 Foolproof Way To Become a Better Writer The Story Of A House- The Final Days He Died A Hero Twenty-Five Links That Will Make You A Better Writer/Blogger Thanks for coming by, I hope you like it. If you want to reach me use the contact form or try talk-to-jacknow-at-gmail-dotcom You can also find more information by clicking About Me and reading my profile there. Also, I encourage you to sign up for my newsletter using the form on the top right hand side of the page.
        Joshua Wilner says:

        Been chuckling about that for two days now, so true. Too bad we can’t take the Delorean out to test out the theory.

        Reply

  2. You know, I’ve often thought about this as I’ve gone through personal changes throughout the years (especially since getting married and having kids).

    I look back on my younger self, and see a lot of good, but also a lot of assholery. While I don’t think I’d change too much – after all, we are who we are today because of who we were yesterday – I do think I’d offer some advice.

    – Don’t be such a dick to girlfriends. Be on time, be truthful, and be better prepared to understand you’re not a great catch at the minute.

    – Don’t be such an asshole to your parent’s, especially your mum. Yes, your stepdad will be a dick, but that’s not your mum’s fault. Love does funny things to people – ease up on the moodiness.

    – Travel more. Like, really travel. Don’t wait until your early thirties to go backpacking. Live while you’re young, worry about work when you’re older.

    Of course, whether I’d listen to the older me is another thing altogether… 😉

    Reply

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