5 Life Lessons I Know at 28 I Wish I Knew at 18
Article #132 of Life Unlocked - A newsletter by Dr Yath Prem, MD
Hi friends,
A few weeks ago, I turned 28. Birthdays have a way of pulling you into reflection. You look back at the road you’ve walked so far, you glance forward at the stretch ahead, and for a moment, you’re caught in between, asking yourself what’s worth carrying into the next chapter. With 30 just around the corner, I’ve started to think more deeply about the kind of life I actually want for my family. Here are the five reflections I’ve been sitting with and the ones I want to carry with me into this year and into the next decade of my life.
The first is about busyness. We often fantasise about living lives bursting with social plans, late-night dinners, and packed calendars. We assume that’s what success looks like. If you take a walk around Central London, you see this in action. Busy corporate bodies, running from meetings to evening drinks and weekends, topped with performative Instagrammable motives. But when I strip the noise away, what I really crave isn’t more activity but more peace. It reminds me of the parable of the Mexican fisherman. This is where the “dream life” of retirement and freedom turns out to be no different from the simple life you could already be living today. Success, for me, isn’t about how much I can cram in; it’s about whether I have space to stand still.
The second reflection is about wealth. We’ve been conditioned to see wealth in material terms: the biggest house, the newest car, the job title that impresses at parties. But true wealth, I’ve realised, is more subtle and more precious. It’s health and time. For me, it’s about being able to move freely and live without constraints. It’s also love. To have a circle of people you can truly rely on is wealth. Finally, it’s that quiet but powerful ability to say, I have enough. Seneca once wrote, “It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor.” Once you can say “enough” and mean it, you’ve freed yourself from the endless chase.
The third is about the invisible weight of what others will think. It shapes so many of our decisions without us noticing. We buy the car that “matches” our salary. We order the extra drink to keep up with the table. We say yes when we mean no. All because of how it might look. But here’s the truth: most people aren’t thinking about us at all. And the few who are? They’ll forget by next week. Living for their perception is living a wasted life. If I want my life to feel like mine, my choices need to be mine too.
The fourth reflection is that I don’t owe anyone an explanation. By now, I’ve heard every version of unsolicited advice. Why leave a stable career in medicine? Why are you not working hard? Why don’t you try this instead? It’s safer, it pays more? Some of it comes from people who care deeply, but caring doesn’t make them right. At the end of the day, nobody else has to carry the consequences of my decisions. Not in my hardest moments, not at the end of my life. So why should anyone else get the final say? Advice is optional. Approval is unnecessary.
Finally, the fifth one I’m holding onto most tightly is that it’s never too late. I’ve spent years telling myself the ship has sailed on certain dreams. That I missed the right moment. That the window’s closed. But at 28, how can that possibly be true? If I’m lucky, I still have 50+ years ahead of me. As the old proverb goes, the best time to time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, the next best time is today. That’s the mantra I want to live by: to keep starting, no matter how much time has passed.
So that’s where I find myself a few weeks into 28. Less about chasing, more about simplifying. Less about performing, more about being. Less about timelines, more about trust.
Warm Regards,
Yath
Quote of the week:
The people who get what they’re after are very often the ones who just stick around long enough. It’s very important not to quit prematurely.
— Austin Kleon (Show Your Work!)
I’m Yath, an Ex-NHS Doctor working in health-tech to shape the future of healthcare and wellness. My personal mission is to achieve time and financial freedom.
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