The Dumbest Things People Ever Did In Their 20s

Free Money

"Decided against contributing to my company's matching 401k. It cost me hundreds of thousands of dollars."

- orange_cuse

"This can't be stressed enough. If your company is matching 401k contributions, the single best thing you can do is contribute up to their match. That is an instant 100% return on your investment."

"Social Security benefits will not be enough for you to retire comfortably, and when you're over 50 it gets real tough to find work that pays more than minimum wage. Make saving a priority now. The sooner the better, because it is a cruel world for unprepared retirees."

- gishnon

Much-Needed Routines

"Everyone wants to hear about dumb stuff like driving eight hours to get with someone you liked only for it to end up being a booty call."

"However, I personally think it was my general lack of effort to build any good habits like exercise. Your body likes routines, and my routine of gaming for 15 hours a day was not one I should have cultivated."

- stormscape10x

"This is such an important one! I'm 25 and have wasted the last eight years of my life being a typical Asian young adult, focusing solely on education and career instead of doing more to take care of my fitness and mental well-being."

"My culture brainwashed me into thinking of it as a good thing to sit at my desk and study for six hours straight instead of building a good habit of eating a balanced meal and exercising every day. I'm paying for that mistake now."

- ListernerSaraf

Dental Hygiene

"Not looking after my teeth."

- pgraczer

"Second best time is now! Start taking care of them and get into the dentist, a dental school even for free cleaning and check-ups."

- Weazy-N420

"I'm still playing catchup. I let my teeth go in college and didn't get them looked at until after I finished AIT in 2020. I had them in a good spot for a while, deployment in 2022 f**ked them up again though. It's so godd**n hard to fix your teeth once they're on the downward slide."

- MonsieurLinc

"I have weak teeth, too. That's not a reason to give up, it's just a reason to absolutely lock down your routine. You'll save yourself a lot of time, money, and pain!"

"Here's what I do:"

"I only eat two times per day (intermittent fasting is not for everyone but it's great for limiting acid exposure on your teeth). And don't drink anything sugary. If you have to, do it while you're eating and not between meals."

"Swish with water and/or mouthwash immediately after meals/drinks."

"Wait 30 minutes before brushing. Your enamel is softest directly after eating so brushing too soon can be harmful."

"Get really good toothpaste with fluoride or hydroxyapatite for remineralization. Your dentist can give you a prescription high-fluoride toothpaste."

"Do your brushing routine in this order: floss, then mouthwash, then brush. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush and don't scrub too hard. Don't rinse after brushing so the fluoride can stay on your teeth and do its work."

"Get a tongue scraper and do that once in a while too."

"If you're away from home (work, friend's house, driving, etc) and don't have a toothbrush, xylitol gum is great for a quick cleaning and breath freshening. Xylitol helps kill plaque-causing bacteria because they think it's sugar."

"Might seem like a lot but it's worth it! My mouth always feels clean and I get compliments from hygienists."

- pmvegetables

Deep Burnout

"I worked way too hard and burnt out. Sacrificed family time. Sacrificed health. Need to pace yourself at the age of 20-30."

- big-bad-bird

"This is me right now. 29 and totally burned out. I refused to pace myself even with my chronic illness, I refused to address my traumas because 'I am a functional member of society so why would I seek a therapist,' and I refused to say no to things because I was afraid people would dislike me."

"Last year, I slowly started collapsing under all that. Things I repressed wouldn't stay repressed and because of nightmares, I had constant panic attacks when I got home from work and eventually bordered on agoraphobia where I would try and flee the grocery store because 'everyone can see you are feeling unwell and is judging you' and started making excuses to work from home because the office would overwhelm me."

"I really wish I started addressing stuff sooner. I tire so easily now and am constantly anxious about not being productive enough now that I'm at home. Which is super counterproductive when your body is saying, 'Yo, slow down. Please go find a nice hobby and relax.'"

- Melvarkie

Chasing Love

"Begged to be loved."

- SystemNovel7112

"I’m still in my early twenties and I feel like this is what I’ve been doing. The worst part is that other people are good at detecting desperation so they move away from you, which just hurts more."

- Jakov_Salinsky

Roommate Status

"I moved in with a girlfriend before finding out more about her preferences. We had been dating for a year but I didn’t realize how much of a problem she had sharing until we lived together."

"We lived together for five years and never shared a bedroom, had everything split down the middle, including the pantry and fridge. Even when it came to spices, she insisted on me getting my own. She hated it when I would be in the same room as her unless it was on 'her terms.'"

"Whenever I asked to make our relationship more of a shared experience, I was gaslit into believing I was wrong for not allowing boundaries. She moved out a month ago, and I couldn’t believe how quickly my mental health improved simply by not having that toxic influence around anymore."

- Char10

Sobering Up

"Fell into a debilitating drug addiction. I have 26 months sober on the fifth!"

- pumpe88

Motorcycle Insurance

"I took a $12k loan to buy a motorcycle. I didn’t want to pay for comprehensive insurance, and the bike got stolen four months later."

- toyotasquad

Mental Health Assistance

"Not getting help for my depression sooner. Spent the entire first half of my 20s in the darkest place I can imagine, and all I needed to feel better was some meds once a day."

- badgirlkayy

Lackluster Love

"I got into a half-hearted relationship and wasted three years of my life."

- plutorollsvanillaice

Receiving an Education

"Not studying properly."

"At the time, studying for two to seven years seemed like a lifetime, but now at 30, I wish I had done it. Don't have the money or flexibility to do it now."

- MarmateW

Early Alcoholism

"I drank my way through my entire 20s. After 25, it wasn't really fun anymore, but that didn't stop me. I drank for another five years."

"My 20s are a total blur splattered with some fun times here and there. But mostly it was just me running away from things with alcohol."

"Almost 17 years later and not one drop. My 30s and 40s are exceptionally better."

- Blackbeltchicken

#GolfCartLife

"I crashed a golf cart at 29. I was so f**ked up with road rash, both ankles were rolled and f**ked up, and one Achilles was messed up pretty bad."

"It took two years for one ankle to feel normal again. I still have a bunch of scarring. I have never f**ked myself up so badly before. The road rash and treating it all over my body was one of the most painful things I’ve ever dealt with."

"I am so careful in those things now and honestly just everything in general. I'm lucky I didn’t hit my head."

- ochief19

...But How?

"I went to Italy and forgot to eat pizza."

"I still can't believe that happened. I had pasta there, gelato, took some amazing photos, explored a lot, and when I came back, I was like, I missed something?"

"Then I was like, 'F**K! I forgot to eat pizza, IN ITALY!' LOL (laughing out loud)."

- TheStraightishGuy

An Unexpected Life

"I remember when I was that age and desperately wanting the kind of job you work for the same place your whole life. Instead, I was in a dead-end job, working the third shift, going to school, and worrying constantly about what I was going to do with my life. I was lost and without any real direction."

"20-some years later, I still don’t have many traditional accomplishments. I’m a stay-at-home dad, and I was diagnosed with Crohn's at 21/22, so that ended school."

"All the things I thought I’d need to get through life, I don’t have."

"What I DO have is a wide array of experiences. I’ve worked in retail for decades, childcare/teaching/mentoring/etc., had kids for almost as long, worked on a shrimp boat, and tree farms, I’ve seen and been around every state except for Alaska."

" I know a ton of people and I’m generally on good terms with them, I’m healthy enough to exercise every day, I have a loving family, and all our basic needs are met. I’m still directionless but I’m no longer lost."

"Anyone else out there feeing like I did, just do the best you can with what you’ve got. Never stop trying to be better, and if you need to, just point in a direction and go that way."

"If you need a degree but you don’t know what you want, just pick something you think you’ll like. Some jobs that need a college degree mean they need someone with a Bachelor's degree."

- altxatu

When we think of mistakes made in our twenties, we might think of dating mishaps and drinking or partying too much.

But the reality is that the mistakes made in our twenties are far more serious, like creating routines that help us take care of ourselves or completing tasks that will help us reach our dreams.

Fortunately, we're young in our twenties, and we have a lot of time to come back from those mistakes.

It's also never too late to commit to doing better right now.