When I was younger, like in my teens ’till mid-twenties, I used to think that it was the best time of my life. I was always scared of turning 30 years old one day, and I had insane expectations for myself about what I wanted to achieve before that age. And now, the time has come. I’m turning 30 years old in a few months and have actually come to the last Q of my roaring twenties.

Why life doesn’t peak before 30

The past few years have been really good, but I wouldn’t say I’ve been through the highlight of my life yet. Actually, in the past years my life has gradually become better and better. Since the beginning of high school until this year, I have surprised myself at how much better life became each year.

I’m actually laughing at the fact that I thought high school was going to be the best time of my life, because it clearly wasn’t. And neither were my student years, I mean – how could they have been? They were an absolute blessing, but I was still young then. And therefore I was insecure, still had to figure myself out, had to do a lot of things I really didn’t want to do, and was broke, hungover and stressed over deadlines a large part of my time.

Why life is a blast after 30

And as I grew older, like between 25 and 29, all these problems seemed to solve themselves almost automatically. As I finished my studies and started working fulltime, I actually learned more about myself and what kind of life I wanted. I also grew more confident as I felt more sense of accomplishment and pride through my work and building my character.

As for the other hardships; growing older fixed these too. Of course not all 30-ish year-olds have the same life, but at least most of them have something of a stable income, know who they are and what they want, and have the tools and resources to build the life that they want. Another mayor thing for me is: I can live by my own rules now.

Because when you are younger, you have to live by rules others made for you – and legitimately so. You have to make deadlines for school, have to proof that you’re not stupid all the time, and have to listen to your parents because you still rely on them for a large part. I really appreciate the freedom of not having to do anything I don’t want anymore, and not try to do things I’m not good at all the time.

I feel like for a large part, I have proven to be capable and smart at this age. I can avoid situations I don’t want to be in, and for all I know if I want to, I can sleep in as long as I want, drink alcohol on weekdays, and take a walk in the middle of the night. Yes, 30 is pretty flirty and thriving. Actually.

xx Coco