15 Highlights from “The Defining Decade” by Meg Jay

For those who have not yet read this helpful book, I have included a few quotations below that I found to be highly valuable.

1.“It’s a human tendency, one that underpins addiction, procrastination, health, oil consumption, and yes, saving for retirement … but twentysomethings are especially prone to present bias.” (Do the Math)

2.  “They (women) deserve to be educated about fertility statistics before they themselves are the statistics.” (Every Body)

3. “A more resilient confidence comes from succeeding – and from surviving some failures.” (Outside in)

4. “Whether we are talking about love or work, the confidence that overrides insecurity comes from experience.” (Outside in)

5. “Like you’ve been tempted to quit your job, they are tempted to break up or pick a fight to force some kind of closure so they don’t get caught by surprise.” (Calm Yourself)

6. “The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook.” (Calm Yourself)

7. “Twentysomethings who don’t feel anxious and incompetent at work are usually overconfident or underemployed.” (Calm Yourself)

8. “Marriage is a commitment, not a guarantee.” (Being in Like)

9. “Most often, people split up because things don’t change.“ (Being in Like)

10. “A story you wrote might have made sense to you at the time you wrote it, but it has to make sense for everyone who reads it.” (On Dating Down)

11. “The most difficult thing to cure is the patient’s attempt at self-cure.” (On Dating Down)

12. “One is, obviously, don’t cohabitate before an engagement.” (The Cohabitation Effect)

13. “Doing something later is not necessarily the same as doing something better.” (An Upmarket Conversation)

14. “The fastest route to something new is one phone call, one e-mail, one box of books, one favour, one thirtieth birthday party.” (Weak Ties)

15. “Our strong ties feel comfortable and familiar but, other than support, they may have little to offer.” (Weak Ties)