To my dearest Neofundi readers

Where have I been? It’s been a while since I blogged and so much has happened since: I’ve lived abroad, bought an apartment, put on a one-woman show and turned 30…OMG turned 30! I always used to think that 30 was rather old, but I have a very different viewpoint now that I have crested this milestone. The last year has been a rollercoaster ride of so many incredible experiences, but most of all, one in which I have lived my passions so wholeheartedly, that I didn’t make enough time for my passion to write. Luckily, along with my 14 New Year’s resolutions for 20FORTUNE, comes my commitment to keeping you updated and to sharing my antics with you on this platform. So, I’m back, ready to kick-start the year of the horse with my mane gleaming and my hooves itching. Here’s to a new year and a new decade for me… let’s hope it’s all we wish it to be and more…

Now that I’m 30, people have been asking if I feel different. I woke up on the morning of my thirtieth birthday to assess my face for any signs of newly sprung wrinkles, and was thrilled to find that my face still looked 29, or 24 as I like to tell people I meet. Did I feel any different? Yes. I felt like a grownup, more assertive and sure of my convictions, which I demonstrated in the iStore, out of town, when my phone decided to freeze due to phone call overload. I did feel some sort of special that so many people had tried to reach me that not even an Apple could cope, but at the same time adequately frustrated that no one else would be successful that day. I spoke in a very grown up voice when the “Genius Bar” guy told me “there was nothing he could do,” and explained my dire straits to his bored blank stare. I gave him no option but to spend the next 45 minutes assisting me on bringing my baby back to life – and he did. Well, I did, if we have to be technical, and with an elated shriek I practically skipped out of the store.

So no I don’t look older, yes I do feel different and where to from here? What are you supposed to have achieved by 30? The benchmarks of having married at 21 and having had 5 children since seems a little outdated, and to be honest, there is no manual on what to have done and not done by 30, but one thing I can say is I feel like I have lived. I have taken every opportunity, jumped at every chance and thrown caution to the wind. Instead of asking why, I have asked why not, and I intend to live like this for the rest of my years.

Although 30 is not old, I have learnt some things in my 30 years, and I would love to share these with you. So here goes:

30 things I have learnt in 30 years

 1. Be brave

2. Make your own rules

3. If 99% is near perfect – why worry about the 1%

4. Make time for things that are important to YOU

5. Read books

6. Live a full life – pack every minute

7. Surround yourself with people who lift you higher

8. Don’t spend so much time on what people think – their opinion of you is none of your business

9. Have big birthday parties

10. Celebrate the small stuff

11. Follow your wanderlust – travel is the university of life

12. Invest in people

13. Rest

14. Challenge your body and mind

15. People will never forget how you made them feel

16. Keep your promises

17. Show people how you feel about them

18. Don’t take it all so personally

19. Do things for people who can do nothing for you

20. Spend time with children

21. Feed your soul

22. Exchange doing what’s right with doing what’s right for you

23. Laugh every single day

24. Work on yourself

25. Listen to your intuition

26. Learn new skills

27. Life is so short

28. If you want it, let nothing stand in your way

29. Watch movies

30. Find a mentor

So there you have it. 30 things I have learnt in 30 years – I have learnt a lot more, but these are the most important to me and the ones I have decided to stick to. There is no manual on how to live your life, but if you live it happily ever after, I think that’s what is most important. Join the #100happydays movement on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to remind yourself of all the little things that make you happy and make you smile. This blog post will be mine today.

Happy  Monday

xoxo

passionista