Your 20s is a magical time: you’re discovering yourself and the world, making new friends, and embarking on a new chapter in your life. But it can also be a confusing time for many, and you may feel lost in a sea of options and the new demands of adulthood.

In this article, we list 11 things you can do at 21 that will help you prepare for a successful and fulfilling future. Now is the best time to set some goals, explore your interests, and invest in yourself. Your future self will thank you.

Top 11 Things To Do to Make the Most out of your 20s

1. Travel

You’re young and (possibly) adventurous in your 20s. You probably don’t have a mortgage to pay, or children to take care of, so now is the perfect time to explore the world, experience other cultures, and meet fellow travelers. Traveling is one of those opportunities that people commonly regret not taking advantage of when they’re older and tied down with other responsibilities, and your future self will thank you for opening up your world-view when you had the chance.

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2. Reinvent yourself

Your 20s are the perfect time to reinvent yourself. Even if you’ve been a certain kind of person up until now, your 20s gives you the opportunity to reassess who you would like to be and let go of old labels. Just because you were one way in high school, does not mean that you need to continue that way.

James Altucher, author of Reinventing Yourself, suggests finding a mentor (whether direct, indirect, or the “everything is a mentor” mentality), and start calling yourself by your new title as soon as possible. For instance, if you wish to become a writer, start calling yourself a writer and get started. He also believes that it takes five years to fully reinvent yourself, so your 20s is a great time to begin the process.

3. Practice self-love

No matter what age you begin dating, your 20s is a great time to invest in the longest relationship you’ll have in your life: the relationship with yourself. Think about it, relationships and even marriages may come and go, but you’re stuck with yourself, no matter what happens. So it’s crucial that you have a strong, healthy relationship with yourself in order to weather the dating scene and attract healthy relationships into your life.

Practice self-love by being aware of your needs, and treating yourself as your first priority. Self-love may look like self-care, such as taking care of your body, but it is also a deeper practice, such as avoiding negative thinking about yourself, and trusting yourself to make good decisions.

4. Invest in mental health

Similar to practicing self-love, your 20s is a great time to invest in your mental health so that you feel stable and happy later on in life. Some may struggle with mental health more than others, so making your mental health a priority early on in life will help set up healthy habits, emotional tools for when things get messy, and a support system for when you most need it.

Investing in mental health may look like finding a good therapist, establishing healthy habits, finding out more about your depression or anxiety, and learning coping tools for the challenging moments in life.

5. Go after your dream job

If you already know what kind of job you want, you’re very lucky. Once you know what you want to do (or even what direction you’d like to go in), now is a great time to get your foot in the door and start working toward your career goals. If your dream job entails further education, getting a degree in your 20s will mean that you’ll get to your job and start making money that much faster. Other jobs may entail special internships, networking, skills, or resources. Your 20s is a great time to get your momentum going.

6. Earn a degree

As mentioned above, your 20s is a great time to earn a degree. College and university is a great environment to make life-long friends, make important connections for your career, and experiment with different fields and life paths. Even if you don’t need a degree for your desired career, college is a great time to gain knowledge in an assortment of topics, gain writing and communication skills, and meet like-minded people. Having a degree can also be helpful if you decide to switch career paths and go back to school later in life.

University of the People is a great option for earning a degree online, so that you can continue working, traveling, and exploring while going to school. Our online university prides itself on quality education at an affordable price, and our students earn degrees from all around the world.

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7. Build good friendships

Let’s face it. It gets harder and harder to make friends as we get older. Your 20s is the best time to mingle, explore, and meet new people who may end up being your best friends. Not only is it a good time to meet new people, but it’s also a flexible time to find out what kind of people and friends you want in your life.

8. Connect with your family

While you’re investing in good relationships, now is also a great time to get to know your family a bit better. Your early 20s is a time when you’re transitioning from a teenager to the adult you’re becoming, and this creates a new dynamic with your parents and other family members. Finding the time to join your family for holidays, or even a dinner every once in a while, will help create meaningful connections into your adulthood.

One of the most common regrets that people have in their later years is being estranged with family members or having strained family ties. Your 20s is a great time to set the stage for better connections.

9. Invest in hobbies

Your 20s is the best time for exploration. Once you have an involved career, mortgage, or children, it may be more difficult to find the time to pick up new interests just for fun. According to Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers, it takes approximately 10,000 hours to “master” a skill, so your 20s is a great time to get started. Pick up a guitar, learn to paint, take that language class, go rock climbing or fishing, and just see where your interests take you. Your future self will thank you for investing in yourself while you were young.

10. Learn about investments

Many think that your 20s is the time to party and waste money, but learning to be financially savvy early on can help tremendously in the long-run. In “A Beginner’s Guide to Investing in Your 20s,” they suggest starting by defining your financial goals, and keeping 3-6 months of rent money in an emergency fund. Once your financial goals have been planned, you can start investing according to your goals. For example, money that you wish to use for a down-payment on a house will be invested differently than retirement money which will only be used later on in life.

11. Set goals

Setting goals for your life in your 20’s will give you a great jump-start into adulthood. It can be hard to follow your dreams if you don’t know what they are, so take some time to think about what you want and set up a plan for getting there. Things may change as you grow, but having clear goals in terms of your education, career, finances, social life, and interests, will help you confidently move through your 20s and into your 30s and beyond.

Wrap Up

These 11 things  you can do at 21 that will help you create great goals and investments for your future. Your 20s is an important time in your development, and there are many things that you can do to make your life easier, more fulfilling, and more stable later on in life.

If earning a degree is a part of your 20s goals, consider earning a degree online at University of the People. Online learning leaves room to continue working on your other goals. And because we pride ourselves on offering quality education that is completely affordable, our tuition-free degrees mean that you can earn a degree while saving for your future and avoiding student debt.