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11 minutes
Despite what many blogs online will tell you about my age (most say I’m 22, 23, or above), today is actually my 21st birthday. Since I was about 12 I would always tell my Mom that I was going to be a millionaire by 21. I guess that means I have twelve months to reach my goal and I like to think I’m on track.
Although this post is not directly related to internet marketing and you might think I have nothing to share because of my youth, I’ve been through a lot in the process of going from a college dropout to now making a living for myself online. I hope that there’s something you can take away from this post and apply to your own journey.
Although I would love to say this post idea was entirely mine, I do have to give credit to Baker who wrote a great post after turning 26 along the same theme.
1. There is No End Destination
Whether you like it or not, there’s no end goal to achieve in life. Society likes to teach us our role is to go through college, get a degree, find a job, attract a partner, have kids and then let our kids start that cycle again. At every step on this path we’re always looking to achieve something as if it was necessary.
I like to use an analogy with having a boyfriend or girlfriend to explain this example. Let’s say you’re lying in bed with a partner you love, gazing into their eyes and enjoying their presence. That’s it. There is nowhere to go from that situation. You can get engaged, married, have kids or any other “goal” we attach on to having a relationship, but you’re just going to end up lying next to each other and enjoying each others company.
Learn to appreciate the moment (the now) rather than hoping for some further end result.
2. You Are the Magic Bullet
I mostly came to this realisation by getting caught in the make money online trap. You know the one that promises you “$10k in a fortnight” or “How to secretly crush Google” so you end up buying eBook after eBook. I soon realised that the books which were supposed to be making me money we’re really just making me have less.
After a lot of failed attempts at making money online I eventually decided to just focus on one project and not stop until it made some money. It took a lot of work and a lot more patience, but sure enough, it did eventually start bringing in a decent income for me.
The lesson from this is that there is only so much other people can do for you in helping you get what you want out of life. There is no magic bullet to be found. You are the magic bullet. It’s you that needs to put what you learn into action, stay consistent with the process, and carve out the results you deserve.
In other words: make life happen. Don’t wait for it to happen to you.
3. Death Is a Great Thing to Think About
Death is not pretty and losing loved ones is one of the hardest things to go through. I lost a number of people close to me in 2009, so I know what it’s like. Whether you hate me, love me, or couldn’t care less, we both have something in common: We’re going to die.
Not one human in the history of the world has been able to bypass death. There’s no avoiding it. We all know this, but we rarely use it to propel our lives in the direction we want to take it. Anytime I’m fearful, anxious or nervous, I just realise that one day I’m going to die and I have to make the most of life right now.
I even have a sign on my wardrobe cupboard that I see every day when I wake up. It has the letters LEDLIYLAODYBR on it which stands for: “Live everyday like it’s your last and one day you’ll be right.”
The two great things that come from as a by-product of death realisation are going for what you want in life and living in the moment (because there’s no end destination, remember).
4. Your Social Circle is a Huge Gauge To Where You’ll End Up
Numerous studies have shown that people are not only highly influenced by their social circle but you can also estimate how much money someone is making based on how much their friends are making. In most cases, each friend is making no little more than their friends and rarely over 20% extra.
Most of the people I spend my time with either own large companies or work for themselves from home. It’s not a coincidence that my life is going the way I want it to compared to when I was getting nowhere spending time with people happy to work in a supermarket for the rest of their lives.
I’m not suggesting that you go out and ditch your friends, but do look to add more positive influences in your life and see how that affects you. I think you’ll be surprised with the results.
5. If You Have Haters, You’re Probably Doing Something Right
Some people really don’t like me. I’m totally fine with that, but it’s not something I’ll deny. The people I know who really don’t like me are the people that used to be some of my best friends. As soon as I started to grow and make more money, they didn’t like to see the dynamics of our social groups changing so they resented me instead.
Similarly, there will be some people online who hate me, simply because I’m building a successful blog. The logistical aspect of me making barely any money on this site and putting in hours of my time for each article doesn’t matter to them. Jealousy and change resistance are the two main reasons people begin to find haters when they start becoming successful.
Just remember that having these haters is perfectly normal when you start to improve your life and have success in different areas. Having them simply means you’re doing something right.
6. Pick a Focus and Ask the Question
There’s a lot of drama in my life at times and I like to think most of it isn’t created by me. I have friends changing because I’m growing (point 5), people I can’t see because I’m busy so they get annoyed and people who try to change business deals I’ve been working on for weeks at the last minute.
No matter what is going on though, I’m rarely fazed, and that’s because I have my set focus in life. My focus right now is a financial one geared towards my family. So, whenever any drama does come up in my life, I simply ask: “How does this affect [my focus]?”
It usually doesn’t and I just continue with my day as normal. This question helps to keep me on track and not get sucked into the never-ending drama that surrounds my life and I’m sure it will help you too.
7. Your Income Can Only Grow to the Extent That You Do
This is a quote from T Harv Ecker in the great book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind and rings true for me and from my experience. He uses an example where he asks readers to think about their income levels over the last few years and notice that there will be highs and lows, but you’ve probably returned to a similar wealth level time and time again.
The reason is that we unconsciously have a limit in our minds of how much we think we’re worth so if we make more money, we’ll spend more to get back to that level. He covers a number of case studies in the book and I can definitely relate to this on a personal level.
Once you realise you may have an income or wealth barrier in your head that is holding you back, you can learn to let it go and open your mind up to the riches that are available to all of us.
8. Procrastination is a Choice
You can read tips on procrastination till there’s nothing left to read and still find yourself playing games online rather than finishing an essay or writing your next blog post. Procrastination is simply your choice between whether you want to do something or whether you don’t, and the choice to take action on whichever.
My best tip for inspiring you to take action is to only work on something when you feel like working on it. That may sound counter-productive; but it does work. You may get so close to a deadline and worry about the consequences of not finishing something that it spurs you into action that way. Or, you may just stop pressuring yourself and find that you really wanted to do the thing you’ve been putting off.
9. Be Your Own Guru
I have a number of influences in my life. In terms of blogging, I have massive respect for people like Brian Clark and Darren Rowse. In the public eye I love people like Russell Simmons and Aubrey Graham (Drake). My favourite authors are Seth Godin and Eckhart Tolle.
The common factor between the people that inspire and influence me is that they’ve all worked hard to get to where they are and then focused on sharing their message. That resonates with me a lot. Despite having these influences, I realise that ultimately I have to take the information coming at me from all angles and process it to see how it best helps me on my own journey.
There’s no one path to follow or one persons advice that is the best. I simply recognise that I am the Guru in my own life (as you should be in yours) and take the value which makes sense to me then discard the rest.
10. Focus on What You Want. Not on What You Don’t
While I don’t like how the message of the secret was promoted and shared to the world, the main point of the movie – the law of attraction – has a lot of merits. Whatever you focus your mind on, you attract into your life. Through my research into NLP I found that our mind does not know the difference between negative and positive when it comes to thoughts.
So, if you continually think “I don’t want to think about X” you’re always going to think about X because that’s the only input you’re giving your mind to work with. If you’re thinking about things you don’t want, flip them on the angle of what you do want, and start focusing on that instead.
11. Take Responsibility for Your Own Life
At times, it feels good to pass things on to other people. When I’m struggling with a database move, I’ll ask my assistant to help me and then I can stop worrying about it. If my appendix were to burst, I wouldn’t try to deal with it myself. Instead I would go to a doctor I can trust to help me get through the situation safely.
Though there are things here and there that require us relying on other people, we ultimately have to take the direction and result of our lives into our own hands. Most people I went to school with are in dead-end jobs (if they’re lucky enough to find one in this recession) and don’t really have any plans to get out of living paycheck to paycheck.
I wasn’t lucky. I simply took right action for a long time and carved out the life I wanted for myself. This life is your responsibility.
12. Don’t Give People Too Much Permission
Just like I have people bringing drama into my life, there’s also a lot of people who – intentionally or not – attempt to deter me from my path. For example, the more that I grow ViperChill and build my presence online, the more emails I get on a daily basis with people wanting my help.
If I didn’t make emailing me quite difficult via my contact form, there would be a lot more mail to deal with. I don’t give people too much permission to dictate the direction I take my life, how I spend my time, or determine what my priorities should be. As I’m my own guru, I like to set my own guidelines.
Feel free to ignore this point, but you may find yourself advancing a lot slower than you could be.
13. Give Importance to What You Put Out, Not What You Get Back
Every time I publish a blog post, I’m either going to write something that you find useful or you don’t. One post may be a masterpiece and “perfectly timed” for one person yet for another be skipped over and ignored. We simply can’t control how people react to whatever we put out in the world.
We can however control what it is that we put out there. I spend a lot of time on each article because I want them to be packed with value. I try to be a positive influence in the life of my friends because I feel that will help them grow the most.
I don’t know if I really am helping people grow or providing valuable content, but I’ll spend my time caring about that, rather than the feedback I get.
14. Rejection is Only Rejection If You Let it Stop You
My English teacher told me that writing would never be for me. Seth Godin, one of my favourite authors, said my blog was too commercial for his time. College would not let me continue on with my second year. Yet, here I am, living wherever I want in the world and making a living online while helping thousands of people in the process.
If I had listened to my teacher, or Seth, or let college make me think I was a failure, I certainly wouldn’t be in the position I’m in today. You’re going to face a lot of hurdles on any journey that you take, so let them knock you down if they do. Just don’t let them stop you.
15. Women are (Mostly) Emotional While Men are (Mostly) Logical
This is a huge stereotype but it is definitely true of most males and females. Women talk and react about how they feel in the moment (which is why some people say women love drama) whereas men tend to think about things more and need to “retract into their cave” to overcome issues.
One of the best books that talks about this is “Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus” by John Grady. What Men can learn from this is that they must be the emotional rock for their partner so that their woman does not feel bad for expressing her emotions.
What women can learn is that sometimes it can be hard for men to connect and listen intently when they have other things going on in their mind or other tasks they may have prioritised. A common thing for men to do when a woman is sharing her problems is to constantly offer solutions and then get frustrated when their partner is still talking about the problem after offering these “fixes”.
What women want men to do at times like this is simply to listen. Though some people may not agree with the book, this one understanding can benefit any male-female relationship drastically.
16. Everything You Wanted Externally Will Come When You Work On Yourself
When I was younger I was really desperate to have a girlfriend. I thought, “if I just get this one girl, life will be perfect.” Little did I know that even if I had gotten the girl, I wouldn’t have kept her because she would have been the only positive thing in my life.
I’ve spent the last two years seeing lots of girls and partying 4-5 nights per week without caring for girlfriends in the slightest. I could have had many, but I just didn’t want it. As soon as I focused on my business, hobbies and most importantly on finding happiness in myself, it became a lot easier to attract what I had wanted externally.
Right now I’m in a great relationship and I think it works well because we both have other things going on in our lives and we’re not looking to each other for validation or happiness. As soon as I focused on me and stopped looking for things externally, it’s funny how everything external was available.
17. Make All Projects Easier by Focusing on Today
If you look at any project that is going to take you more than a few hours then you may get that sinking feeling in your stomach when you think about the effort ahead. When starting a blog, for example, you could view it as a project that is going to see you writing 4 posts per week, utilising services like Twitter and StumbleUpon regularly, and tweaking your design until you’re happy with it.
Writing 4 posts per week sounds like a lot. Building a house sounds like a lot. Yet, if you just focus on what you have to do today – writing one post or laying some bricks – then the whole task seems 100x easier. For any big project I undertake I simply focus on what I have to do today and let the rest siphon out of my mind.
18. Stop Looking for External Validation
Your Ego loves validation. When you win an award, someone thinks you’re attractive, or you get a flash new car, it feels good. It’s human nature. There’s nothing wrong with that; it’s when you start looking for validation from others that life becomes more stressful and difficult.
If you only feel good about your appearance when someone says you’re good looking, it will affect you negatively when someone says you’re unattractive. If you feel like a million dollars due to how people treat you after buying a new car, you’re going to feel like half the person you were if you have financial troubles and have to trade it.
Internally validate yourself. You are enough. Nothing external will ever make you more of who you already are.
19. As You Grow, Some People Will Try to Hold You Back
Once you start to have success in any area of life or start heading in a new, positive direction, you may be surprised to find people “changing” around you and you just can’t work out why. For me, my friends started acting very differently towards me even though I hadn’t changed at all in the way I was communicating with them.
Similarly, my family who were always supportive tried to downplay my new focus as a dream and something I shouldn’t get carried away with. There are two reasons this happens. The first is the people who purposefully try to hold you back and they do so because they don’t like the dynamics of their own reality changing.
The second is the unconscious holding back from family members and other people who genuinely care for you because they just don’t want to see you build your hopes up and get hurt if things don’t go your way. Learn to recognise this early and you can also learn to ignore it when it happens.
20. Learn to Enjoy the Process
Though my own journey saw me failing college, spending two years working in a clothes store and moving to a country where I didn’t know one single person, I’m glad things didn’t go any other way. The challenges and hard times that I faced really allow me to appreciate the situation I’m in now and, most importantly, I know that I can help other people do the same because I’ve been there.
If the journey was easy for me then I would probably give up anytime I face a challenge in my projects or see the amount of work that something is going to take. I’m used to it now, so I’m happy to push through the difficult times. On that note, it’s also the process that I love the most (and you should too) rather than anything I achieve.
This week I closed my biggest business deal, turned 21, and was interviewed by a blogger with over 110,000 feed subscribers. That’s huge for me, but it’s the journey of getting to this point that I have enjoyed the most. Not the point in itself.
21. Fill in Your Own Blanks
There are only so many lessons that someone like me can teach you or you can take from any book or speaker. You’re going to learn a lot of lessons on your own journey so use them to benefit your life and help take you where you want to go. The best lessons are the ones that you discover for yourself, and they’re definitely the most powerful.
As a shameless plug for my birthday present from you (hey, it’s my birthday, you can’t be mad) I would appreciate you sharing this post on Twitter, Facebook, StumbleUpon or anywhere else you have a presence online. I hope to help as many people as possible with this post so it would be appreciated.
154 Comments
Leave a Reply to Devin
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Happy birthday again Glen. I’m sure you’ll make it in these twelve months!
Thanks Oscar.
Dude,
This is my new favorite blog. 🙂
Wow, thanks a lot Dave.
That means a lot.
Thanks for the lessons! I really think everyone regardless of age can learn from these. A key, in my opinion I always evaluating who you surround yourself with where’re it be virtual or physical. Many people will do their best to influence you with mediocrity.
Rock on! Happy Birthday Glen!
First of all Happy Birthday.
Secondly I do not agree with:
4. Your Social Circle is a Huge Gauge To Where You’ll End Up
You say research proves it, but you haven’t referenced it. If you have a weak personality that is easily led then yeah hanging around with losers might make you a loser. Personally I think I am enough of an individual to carve out my own future. I have unemployed friends, ex con mates, mates that are into drugs, millionaire friends, hippy friends, genius friends etc Granted they don’t hang around in the same social circles but I would like to think as an intelligent independent guy I can appreciate the best in each person without being drawn to much into their world.
I can imagine choosing to just hang around with millionaires and CEOs is fundamentally a shallow and lonely life!
Just my opinion like! Also I am prob not quite as successful as you, and I am 28 not 21 like you so maybe maybe my opinion is wrong! haha.
Hope you have a good birthday though.
I didn’t choose that, it just happened naturally when I started working on myself. That’s quite a limiting belief if you think successful people are lonely and shallow. It sounds like you have your own life on track which may be why you can’t really relate to it. I also have friends who are not wealthy or successful by the standard definition of the term, but I now relate much more to people who do well.
Thanks for the wishes!
Fair play mate, if it happened naturally that’s cool, it just kinda sounded like you were picking friends based on success rather than the ability to be a good friend!
Obviously in my case I believe regardless of a friends position in life, they can have a very positive influence, whether they are homeless or a millionaire. Obviously the reverse is complete true as well!
Happy birthday, Glen. Great list.
Thanks Shannon!
beautiful and profound words. happy birthday
Happy Birthday, Glenn. You’re awesome, dude! Great post. Just exactly what I need this morning. I don’t buy for one minute that your English teacher said that writing would never be your strong suite.
Hi Kiley,
I’m not really sure what to say…it’s true. You can read my early posts on PluginID to see how bad my writing used to be 🙂
You speak well beyond your 21 years, but then again you don’t need “external validation” from me, hahaha!
Big up Glen and Happy Birthday
Haha thanks Devin. Cya on saturday!
Happy Birthday Glen…..
Great Lessons! Bookmarked in my Browser.
Great post…now go get some beers!
Seriously, the wisdom you possess for your relative youth is pretty darned incredible IMO.
Haha, thanks Todd. I’m still recovering from yesterday right now 😉
Happy Birthday, Glen!
Great life lessons you have learnt. No doubt you live a successful life!
Only wish I was this wise at your age!!
Thanks Carey!
Happy birthday, Glen! Thank you for sharing your lessons!
Thanks Mark,
I hope all is well your end.
Happy birthday Glen
Great list too! My, you’ve really packed a lot into your time on earth, and you haven’t even reached your silver jubilee yet! Well done on that…
But I’m a bit confused. You said you still have 12 months to reach your goal of being a millionaire by 21, aren’t you 21 already? Or did I miss something??
Thanks Tola,
Well…I’ll still by 21 for the next 364 days, which is what I meant 🙂
Rightttttt…..
Cheat :p
I couldn’t have picked a better post to start my day with. I’m 23 and resonated with every one of these. I especially loved points 2,4,7,9 and 15. Thanks so much for your inspiration and advice on a daily basis and happy 21st birthday!
Thanks Joel.
You’re very welcome and I appreciate the comment!
You know I’ve said this several times already, but it’s worth being repeated: happy birthday! We’ve developed a great virtual friendship during this last year and a half or so and I’ll hope that connection just gets stronger. One of my goals for the next year is to do a world tour to meet a few people I’ve got to know via blogging and the Internet and you are one of them, so beware!
Be happy anyway 😀
Iván.
Beautifully said Glen. Thank you for sharing these. Sending happy birthday wishes!
Jen
Happy Birthday, Glen. This post rocks. I know people in their 50s who haven’t ingrained as much wisdom as you have. Keep kicking ass.
Happy birthday Glen! I wish I’d had your clarity of vision when I was twenty one.
Shamless plug or not you can have a “Digg” for your birthday present!
Super great list of knowledge… can’t say which is the most important to remember but I should learn from 12 and keep 19 in mind. Also happy birthday Glen.
Martin
Glen, that’s a lot of life lessons buddy. The social circle one doesn’t hold true for me though, thankfully 😉
Happy 21st Birthday, Glen! Have fun.
(P.S. It is true that the ones after your 21st go by quickly. I’m almost 28 and wonder where the last 7 years have gone!!)
That’s Awesome to hear bro. Great Lessons 🙂 I really like the 5th point..”If you have haters, you are probably doing something right” !!
And Happy Birthday Glen.. ! HAve fUN \m/
I hope you have a very Happy 21st Birthday, Glen!
Oh, somehow I don’t think your ‘millionaire by 31’ goal is in that much jeopardy. You are doing wonderfully for your age and I’m sure this is just the start!
Karen
Oops, that was a typo – ‘millionaire by 21’ 🙂
Happy Birthday!
Your wisdom, knowledge, and willingness to share it is far greater than your age.
Thank you.
Glen,
Happy Birthday, mate! Wishing you all the best for all your years.
Great list. Must say, #3 resonated with me big time. I lost my dad on the morning of Christmas Eve last year. Experiencing the loss of someone close to you really puts life in perspective.
Thank you for another great post, and for being a ‘linchpin’. (In the words of Seth Godin)
Happy birthday and thanks for your blog and your ebook. You are changing a lot of lives with it (including mine)!
Happy birthday! And this is a very nice list.
Great article, Glen! Just wanted to wish you Happy Birthday!
Glen –
Happy birthday. You are wise beyond your years, this is an amazing post. Thank you!
Jeremy
Happy Birthday, Glen! Thanks for a good read and wise thoughts. I’m turning 21 in June and just starting with online activity, but blogs like these help me grow and learn. I can already say that I’ve achieved something, not much but still that means a lot to me 🙂
Really great tips.
Viperchill has been a great source of inspiration for me and I wish you a Great 21 year birthday.
Thanks a lot,
-Onibalusi
Absolutely agree, cut loose from the naysayers. Sometimes it is out of jealousy, sometimes it is because they fear for your safety (make money from a website? Yea right, get a job), and sometimes it is because they do not want you to expose the timid life they actually lead lead.
Glen,
Just learned about #3 myself, here is a great quote on the subject of death:
“If we can live with the knowledge that death is our constant companion, traveling on our “left shoulder,” then death can become in the words of Don Juan, our “ally,” still fearsome but continually a source of wise counsel. With death’s counsel, the constant awareness of the limit of our time to live and love, we can always be guided to make the best use of our time and live life to the fullest. But if we are unwilling to fully face the fearsome presence of death on our left shoulder, we deprive ourselves of its counsel and cannot possibly live or love …with clarity. When we shy away from death, the ever-changing nature of things, we inevitably shy away from life.” –M. Scott Peck, the Road Less Traveled.
Thanks for the post.
Happy birthday, Glen! And thanks for an awesome and inspiring post. Wish I’d had your wisdom, energy and attitude at 21. 😉
Looking forward to seeing where you go in the next few years!
Ali x
Happy birthday! Great takeaways!
I’m interested to know where you see yourself in 20 years after the great success you’ve had in the first 21 – seems like there’s gotta be a ceiling here or a lack of disinterest that’ll come at some point. I would love to hear about the long term!
Happy Birthday Glen 🙂
I just know that I am going to get so much value from this post!
Thank you very much for sharing your wisdom.
Happy Birthday Glen. I’m just a recent reader of your blog, and I have to say that it’s top notch. Hope you’ll continue making these inspiring posts.
Happy Birthday Glen,
I love your list and you are definitely wise beyond your years. I have a daughter who will be 21 in July, 2010… and I sent her your list. I hope it touches her heart like it did mine. Cheers!
I always said I would be a millionaire by the time I was 40… and I was thinking that I only had 6 months left to reach that goal… you just made me realize that I have 18 months to reach that goal… because I will be 40 for a whole year after my birthday. Not that I am procrastinating or anything. 😉
Abu
Wow, awesome post. #2 is key for me, always chasing that bullet and then realizing I already know what I need to do. Now just do it.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! and # 15 is True – good thing you’re passing the word it will certainly add to world peace.
Don’t matter man. I shared your post on twitter and I love # 5. Haters will be haters.
Wow Glen. You’ve made the most of 21 years, congratulations. Thoughtful post and valuable blog, thanks.
Happy Birthday Glenn. Tweeted your article. Thank you for writing this blog, I’ve heard many good things about it and I reference it frequently to my different agency friends.
Nice post Glen and of course happy b-day! Hopefully someone sings you a happy birthday song today!
Really liked this post, especially the points about accepting your reality for what it really is. We are going to die, and we are our own silver bullet!
I especially have learned that the paths other people follow were theirs and we have our own. We have to tread these to get where we need to go, not try and follow exactly where others have gone. In the end these efforts will just lead us down our own path and may take us away from where we really need and want to go.
Hope things go really well for you this year, and keep rocking your world!
Happy B-Day Glen!
All of these are excellent, excellent lessons. Making death is a reality if you remember this:
You could die in a minute. You probably won’t. But there will come a time in your life that you will die a minute from then, and you won’t even know it…
Scary, but very liberating.
Great post Glen, and Happy Birthday. I’ve been reading your blog for a couple months now and really enjoying it. You do a better job of combining information & inspiration than just about anyone else out there.
Keep it up.
Hi Glen.
I will likely look back at this post a few times. Lot of cool stuff here. A few are counter-intuitive but accurate.
Happy birthday, and great job ignoring resistance that you feel along the way.
Nice post glen very motivational and inspirational. I completely agree with the comments about social circles and your friends and their incomes. I actually have two sets of friends, the friends who I grew up with and the friends I have met from marketing. The friends I grew up with used to joke and take the mick when I used to trade eBooks on eBay but hey it’s all good North Eastern humour (which you will know about)
Incidentally two of my best friends I used to work with every day now earn a full time income from the internet. So I have a good balance of friends who I share business partnerships with and good drinking with 🙂
As far as procrastination goes “Thanks for the tip” Sherlock Holmes DVD on the cinema system stole my morning and the gym took the rest but hey a wise man once said “ Procrastination is simply your choice between whether you want to do something or whether you don’t”:-) Tomorrow is a productive day for sure.
Happy Birthday Glen
Looking forward to 22 lessons next year!
Dan
Happy Birthday Glen, and thanks for sharing your 21 years of wisdom.
Love the part about haters…and it’s so true. Don’t know how anybody could hate this blog though, it’s one of the best reads out there.
Hi Glen – I wish you all the best for your birthday and plenty of great experiences and fun in the next year.
I discovered your blog 2 months ago and have since then read every of your (long!) posts!
Great work, thank you for sharing all your tipps with us!
Glen,
I hope you are having an amazing birthday, as I type this. Thanks for PluginID, and ViperChill. Thanks for putting in so much effort into helping people realize their true value.
Thank you,
Josh Lipovetsky.
This is the kind of posts I used to love on PluginID. I also love the rest of posts you do here.
Your rock Glen, keep it up my brother 😉
Happy Birthday Glen! You’re absolutely right in these points. I’m somewhat irked that it has taken me much longer to learn some of them than you have, but it’s been a great journey so far. Even the parts that should have me in therapy 😀 So I’m just glad I have remained open to learning and have had a lot of fun on the way.
There is no correlation between age and wisdom, experience, or ability to make a difference. Happy birthday. Thanks for the gift of sharing your life lessons.
Happy birthday DJ,
Great post, nothing much to add or question.
(as always) Well done!
Awesome post Glen!!
Happy Birthday Glen!! You are so wise and accomplished for your young years. Hope you’ve had a great birthday, and this coming year is your best one yet. 🙂
Karen
Thanks for the words of wisdom. You’re doing a great thing. I fall short in a lot of these points and have stumbled on this article for a reason.
Happy birthday!!!!! I love the letters on your wardrobe 😉 Have fun!
I love you buddy. 🙂
Oh, your birthday, is it? 🙂 Have to comment then.
Happy birthday, Mister Glen!
Never read your blog before, but I stumbled upon this post (You’re on SU, man!) and I like what I read. 🙂 Props!
Zak Jones!
Great post! Thanks for sharing this. I particularly enjoyed your # 5 and 18. You value Seth Godin in spite of he doesn’t care about your blog. Cool. I want to recommend an extension to your list – a reading by Gordon Livingston “Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart -Thirty True Things You Need to Know “. He complements your post perfectly.
I think your success will continue. Good luck! Reijo (43)
Happy Birthday and Thank You 🙂
I love reading “lessons learned” type articles like this. Keep up the good work!
Oh, and Happy Birthday!
Loved reading this, especially number 3. Too often we ignore death and as a result waste our lives. Also the more people that acknowledge this the easier it becomes to talk about it.
I love reading your blog. It´s great to get so much wisdom from someone who in years is still young. Being who you are, you unintentionally set a great example for other young people.
So here´s to even more lessons to be learned! I hope you write another when you hit 30. I´d love to see what further lessons you learn.
Wise beyond your years. Happy Birthday dude.
Fascinating to hear that Seth Godin thought this blog was too commercial. Given that up until recently I didnt notice you selling anything, I would have thought the blog was alot less commercial than most. Anyway I read alot of blogs out there but yours is the only one I always read. Keep up the good work and good luck on the quest to become a millionaire by 21.
Neil
That is a cool dream. I always said I would be one before I turned 30 and I would never go back to Colombia until I was one. That was a harsh deal I made with myself, but I feel that I need to accomplish this goal before I do go back.
Hey awesome lessons. I gotta say I’m inspired to do mine before my birthday too. I am turning 25 this June so for sure I’ll be doing that.
Thanks Glen
Hey Glen,
Happy Birthday mate. I’ve only started reading your blog the last few days and sent you a couple of emails but I love the work that you do on here.
Online marketing aside, you sound like a great bloke so I wish you all the best for the next 21 years.
Nick
Hello Glen!
I had never written a comment on his blog, despite having read about some of its 20 posts or more (some more than once)
But this could not stop myself, it was the best post I ever read in my life (second, third, fourth and fifth place are their other too! Hehehe)
I read your blog every day, and he helped me grow in more than 50%
Never got hit on my site, but since I read his blog (read it 20 days or so) my blog of 60 daily hits rose to 800 daily. A good start no? And I’m sure it does not stop here, but am now a complete guy in my positive thoughts, knowing what I want, I will win
Congratulations on your birthday, I’m your fan!
Caion – Brazil
(Ps: I used techniques of backlinks to my comment, sorry! Hahaha)
Happy Birthday and thank you very much for the 21 life lessons. Even though I am several years older than you I still learn a lot from you all the time. This post is just a little more proof that you have things figured out a lot more than most people do even though you are young. I have no doubt that you will hit that millionaire mark within the next year!
Belated Happy Birthday! And these are great lessons indeed. I totally agree with number 2. The secret recipe is YOU!
This is the first post i’ve read from you, and no doubt i’ll be reading many more. you are an inspiration! 21, 5, or 97 – these were some valuable nuggets that so many of us neglect to understand/apply in our lives. so thanks for sharing!
#15 is lamentable if it represents your experience, but as you get older and have more experience with women (hopefully fabulous, diverse, and wise ones that will knock your socks off), your perception will surely evolve.
Great effort and cool idea!
Hi, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Nice post, this was the first post I read on your blog, enjoied it! Good job! 😀
Have a nice day! 🙂
Excellent post Glen! 😀 I love all 21 points, lol you’re very wise for a 21 year old guy! 😉 Happy (belated kinda) B-day, I hope it was mucho excellento. Keep doing what you’re doing, until you can’t do it anymore.
Hugs,
C
I know I’m a bit late, but happy birthday man! Really like the value you offer here.
All so true. GOLD!!!
Happy Birthday Glenster!
Kwakaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!
definatly your most beatiful post! thanks a lot
Feliz cumpleaños colega!
I wish i could have learnt that many things when I was 21!!! Don’t forget to chill a bit and have massive fun .. but keep on blogging in this blog. Thanks for the value you’re sharing and the inspiration you’re creating
First off, Happy Birthday!
Secondly, I totally agree with you about working on things when you feel like it. If I’m in the right mood to work on a project I can be so productive I often amaze myself. Compare that with forcing myself to do something because I think it *should* be done is always far more of a struggle and the job takes many times as long as doing the same thing for a project I am passionate about.
well written post,
since i consider myself a psychologist let me define what is meant by hatred (regarding the point number 5)
hatred is nothing more than a defense mechanism the mind uses to help a person stay away from a person who might represent a threat to his well being
if someone saw your success he might feel worthless and so hate you
if someone became jealous of you then he will feel bad whenever he sees you and he will hate you for these emotions you
in short, people who hate others are weak and helpless
keep up the good work:)
Hello Glen,
Happy birthday to you. I was not actually thinking about what you told in this blog, but I was actually comparing you with me. I am also 21 now and now I am going to work with Ernst and Young. I had a passion of internet marketing and have been doing it for 5 years now. But most of the money I bring in, sadly I put it to test on new things and many of them have gone down the drains.
Hoping to be a millionaire is a good thing, given your age. Comparing you and me, I would like to think that anything is possible. Carl Ocab was famous and rich by the time he was just 13 years old.
If you ask me, it’s not about the money. I like the internet marketing stuff and I generally promote only those that I believe in. Now that I have a new job, I might bid adieu to the IM industry.
Great post again.
Happy Birthday, a little late, but I just found out your blog.
You are quite a wise man!
Maria
Very good post dude! Happy very belated birthday too.
Happy Birthday Glen.
I’m glad I got to know you this past year of your life. I have massive respect for you, what you do and where you want to go.
You and I buddy. Great things will happen. Cheers!
Hi Glen! Happy Birthday. I am glad I found this blog – I am always impressed with how much wisdom you have at a young age. Also, thanks for making this a great source of information.
Take Care, Mike
Hey Glen.
Happy birthday bro and best of luck for future.
I can tell you for sure that even I can relate to most of these lessons! Great going.
Karan
Hi Glen,
Deep… I like it 🙂 I especially like your point 11 – take responsibility of your own life! I know a lot of people who complains all the time but it´s never their fault! It is always society, the politicians, their mothers or the neighbours dog! Well buh.. f.. huh – suck it up and get moving! Realise and accept that you are the only person who can change things, starting from NOW!
Happy birthday Glen..
Henrik
“I even have a sign on my wardrobe cupboard that I see every day when I wake up. It has the letters LEDLIYLAODYBR on it which stands for: “Live everyday like it’s your last and one day you’ll be right.”” – Nice. Happy birthday Glen. Imagine how long this post would have been had you turned 50 instead 🙂 Thanks for this inspiring post. Consider it stumbled.
Hey Glenn my question you probably will not like.. but try to answer any way I found it amusing to ask..
If you would make right now number 22,(And was not something like, follow the first 21 advices) wich would be?
Hi Glenn,
I just discovered your site, and I love it. Thanks for this awesome post, I can definitely relate to most of it. Happy birthday!
Wonderful Glen. Just wonderful.
One of the best posts you’ve written on this blog. Everything you’ve said is very true.
Happy Birthday!
What amazes me is how knowledgeable you are not just about Marketing but life. Your life experiences have given you so much experience in so many aspects. I have not read one of your blog posts where i couldnt take something away and that is something pretty special and something.
Take care Glen and dont party too hard! 😛
As you could imagine, I have a different perspective as it has been a number of decades since I was 21. Print this post, put it away and take it out every 10 years- trust me you will find it fascinating. Some of your lessons are good guides to life, others…..well time will tell. I have had a number of careers, as have most of my contemporaries, none that I could have ever imagined at 21. Funny though, the list of lessons learned gets smaller, not larger with time and they tend to center around people and less about achievements and objects.
Enjoy the ride.
Great insights Glen.I found that useful- and I’m still learning!
I have retweeted.
Happy Birthday! Cheers, Mark
This is a fairly amazing post to be honest!!
Happy belated Birthday
Hey Glenn–I landed here because of StumbleUpon. Your blog was just what I needed today. Very inspiring stuff in here, keep it up. You’re in my reader now, thanks!
Great post- you are truly a person wiser than your 21 years of living
I will keep this information in mind as I raise my 2 sons
Happy Birthday!
Michelle
Inspiring stuff – I needed that right now!
Happy Birthday to you. Looks like you learned some lessons that many people barely come to terms with by middle age. Kudos my friend.
This was a VERY interesting and helpful read. Thanks for your contributions my good man. Best of wishes.
Didn’t know you were that young. One more reason for me to be jealous. Happy BD!
It’s great i have stumbled on this site. You are such an inspiration. So jealous you are so much younger than me to realise those things. I hope i’m not that late. I don’t have my own website. But i recently the community of Flickr. I’m very passionate about photography, and now that i have read this i am more alive. More power to you and Happy Birthday!
very insightful post…at 21 you have achieved a lot..well done,you are an inspiration…
Wow congrats on this article and your journey. Your writing has improved over the past years since you owned Pluginid. Lessons learned here, and I can relate completely to myself.
Great read, Glen. I actually just finished writing a similar article and then stumbled upon this one.
Hope your birthday was memorable.
Glen, thanks for your post…it’s really meant a lot and helped me to learned some lessons… 🙂 happy birthday to you too, Glen…
Thank you so much for your post! For me, reading it was really timely. The funny thing is, today is just the day for me to apply what I got out of it! (I’m thinking of starting a business and am changing perspective on a lot of things.) Happy belated birthday. 🙂
just discovered your blog – I really enjoy your approach, it’s refreshing. Happy belated birthday and best of luck with that million.
Thanks Andrew!
I know that this is an old post but I liked it.
When I read the first paragraph I laughed, not because you said you told your mum from an early age that you would be a millionaire by 21 but because I had said the exact same thing to my parents. Now I’m 21 and I have just taken my first steps to starting a project which I’m hoping will be big.
My parents mocked me for saying that I will become a millionaire by 21 especially my dad who would always tell me to keep real and keep my head closer to the ground. One thing I’ve never said is that my dad is right, even now when I’ve got about 6 months to go till 22 I’m adamant at proving my dad wrong.
I don’t really post on blogs and such but I had to after finding someone as crazy as me and in a similar albeit a better situation then me.
Just discovered this blog and feel very inspiring. I don’t want to give belated birthday after 2 months but hope to wish 1st millionaire birthday to Glen next year.Cheers buddy! I also want to be millionaire from zero point by next year by inspiring social circle like yours and by knowing the motivational value of million dollars rather than physical market.
So many wonderful gems of wisdom here. Thank you for making my day a little brighter. Happy Birthday to you, Glen.
I’m turning 21 today and I searched for “21 years” on Google. This came up. I must say that, by reading this post, I basically got confirmation for all my thoughts and “methods” (which I apply to life).
You’re an INFJ, aren’t you? Yes you are, trust me.
Nope
Hey Glen,
Even though I’m here at the end and don’t know if you’ll get to read this, I wanted to wish you more success in life. I hope that your momentum keeps growing even more. You’ve gotten yourself a new fan!
Take care!
Giber
I read it!
Thanks for the comment, Giber
You’re an inspiration! Thank you for everything, I have learned so much from your blog posts.
This is a fairly amazing post to be honest!!
I like “Women are mostly emotional and men are mostly logical” one.
Nice blog.
What a great post Glen – So wise, yet so young!
I like no. 14 about rejection – Takes a strong person to be able to block out rejection, I found it hard to begin with but getting much better now
Great Post…I like “Procrastination is a choice”. I have always been a procrastinator and have worked hard to overcome it. I have learned that all I really have to do is plan each day and follow that plan. Doing this I find that there is no room for procrastination!
Hey Glen,
Good stuff. The one about death struck me because I too have been thinking about the concept. We all die and it is a sobering/freeing thought. I was on a jog yesterday with my girlfriend and was really pissed off because it has been a while since I’ve gone for a jog and I was tired and cranky lol. Two minutes later I passed a house where someone wrote on the siding “nothing is permanent.” I had to laugh because it reminded me that even though we have challenges and sometimes life makes us cranky it won’t last forever.
On a side note, I came across Viper Chill and I love it! I work in the accounting field and we have a client who makes middle six figures online. He definitely got me interested in the opportunities available online and your site has been an awesome resource! Thank you for doing this!
–Charlie
Unfortunately I’m a little too late to congratulate you. I have to say though that your posts are always very inspiring. This is no exception. It seems like you have a very unique way of looking at the world which make you stand out from the many blogs that are out there. Keep it up!
well said 🙂
u must be 23 by now.
i’ll turn 21yo this year.. too many dreams.. amzing goals.. really make me (almost) crazy right now..
really enjoy ur article tho!
great post hell yeah to being 21!!!!!!
Great work ! Congratulations for that post ! It simply embodies my views !
Happy B-Day Glen! Hope it’s a good one.
I know I’m kind of late but hey, Glen is post touched and inspired me. Every point in your list made me goosebumps! They’re all quotable. You’re the …man! =)
One of the best blogs I’ve read so far.
Its really encouraging =]
Will take some of these advise and apply them to my life
thank you
jay
Wow great post ..I’m 21, studying dentistry in Iran, being a bisexual girl and living here(Islamic Republic!!), I relate to many of the things you said..and definitely will take the advices..
really inspiring,thanks.
Good luck on the 365days left;)
Good work
Took points applicable to me…
I NEEDED TO READ THIS! 🙂
Happy belated 21st haha but this is exactly what I am going through. Right now I am 20 and have achieved a myriad of goals and have noticed changes around me. Growing up I used to be mocked and made fun of for my dreams. They did not come over night. These dreams took 13 years of rejection, tears, hardship, and obstacles to come true.
I’ve never changed and when people speak about the dreams I always use a humble tone and tell them my story and why to never give up. I had to get out of the guilt phase of living my dreams because of the social circle changing. Thank you for all of these points. From this day onward, I am declaring my life and who I am shamelessly because of the work put into it. I am grateful for the presence of those in the past who have motivated me. Life
changes and people change.
I love how the universe brought me to your blog at the most perfect time in my life. Thank you for this.
Hippy Happy Birthday Glen. 😀
PS: Great post by the way.
This is Really Great Article. I Really Enjoyed This Post as a Blogger. Thanks for Sharing with us.
Thank you Very Much for Kindly Information.