8 Choices I’m
Making At 34 To
Avoid Regret At 74
Chris Donnelly
1
Treating health as the
highest priority.
Your body is the car and your brain is the driver.
Don’t take either’s health for granted.
Exercise daily
Eat healthy meals
Practice mindfulness.
It’s not complex, but it’s not easy.
1
2
Experience new stuff
always.
Things depreciate. Experiences compound.
Instead of:
Buying a new £500 item → Book a 3-day trip
somewhere new.
Spending £300 on fashion → Invest it into a
course, coach, or workshop.
Scrolling → Block out 1 hour next week to try
something unfamiliar (even if it's awkward).
Monthly Habit:
Set aside a fixed “experience fund” to spend on
new experiences.
2
3 Reading, not scrolling.
Scrolling feeds the algorithm. Reading feeds
your brain.
Here’s a simple swap:
15 minutes on TikTok → 15 pages of a book
Dead time in a queue → Blinkist
Morning scroll → 10 mins on Duolingo
Daily Habit:
Set a 20-minute “no-scroll zone” after you wake
up and before bed. Replace it with something
that compounds.
3
4 Consistent investing.
A steady, diversified portfolio over get-rich-
quick schemes.
Try these:
High-yield savings accounts
Money market funds
Series I savings bonds
Dividend-paying stocks.
4
5 Saying “no” often.
Stop stretching yourself so thin.
Look at it this way:
Each “no” is a “yes” to something else.
Who knows, you could say no to an ‘OK’ job
opportunity today, and get the one you’ve been
waiting for tomorrow.
Understand your priorities!
5
6 Relentless curiosity.
Learning shouldn’t stop after school.
Commit to picking up new skills, trying new
hobbies, and never thinking you know it all. It
could be:
Learning a new language
Cooking new meals
Picking up a new sport.
Try setting a growth plan at the start of every
new year and commit to it.
6
7 Slowing down.
”Savour the little moments. They’re not little.” -
Jon Kabat-Zinn.
Do something for yourself before starting
the working day
Take a mental picture of a joyous moment.
Have humility to enjoy everyone’s company.
Don’t get lost in the grind.
7
8 Help your former self.
What did you used to struggle with immensely?
Think about when you most desperately needed
a mentor.
Do something to help those in a similar
position.
Do this weekly:
Post, share, or offer one insight that would’ve
helped your former self.
Examples:
Turn a past struggle into a carousel.
Mentor someone 2–3 stages behind you.
Record a quick Loom walking through the
playbook you wish you had.
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