Paul Angone Gives Us The Secrets to Getting Through Your 20s By Angela Guzman

Make It Through Your 20s

Do you ever wish that you had the answers to life's most difficult questions? Author Paul Angone gives you just that - a road map to guide you through some of the toughest times you will face in your twenties. Humorous yet very honest, you will find 101 Secrets For Your Twenties to be truthful and knowledgeable. Angone lets his readers know, first-hand, what he has learned and how he was able to get through times that felt unbearable.

In our interview, Angone gave us the insight that went into writing the book and he provides advice to others who are struggling in life. The great thing about Angone's advice is that, in most cases, his words of wisdom can be applied to the issues any age group faces.

Paul Angone is the author of “101 Secrets for your Twenties” (Moody Publishers) and the creator of AllGroanUp.com — a place for those asking “what now?” Buy 101 Secrets for your Twenties here and follow Paul on Twitter.

The Biggest Issue

What would you say is the biggest issue facing 20 something’s today?

The main issue -- this twentysomething shoot ain’t easy! And that’s not what most twentysomethings expect. I know I walked into my 20s expecting it to be slightly sitcom-esque when in reality there were very few made for TV moments.

It’s a decade exploding with intensity and ambiguity. Anxiety and excitement. Purpose and pointlessness. Answers riddled with questions. Paradoxes mixed with 100 percent certainties. There are so many “firsts.” So much change. So many “what ifs, what nows, and what the hecks.”

As I write about in 101 Secrets for your Twenties, it took me a long time to realize that being successful in your twenties is about having the courage to write a really, really lousy first draft. Just getting words down on paper that we’ll edit later. To fail over and over, but never call yourself a failure. Then five rewrites later, we’ll lean back and say, “Wow, that’s actually not too bad.”

So yes, your twenties are going to be harder than you realized, which personally I’m now really thankful for–because you can’t have a good story without a good struggle.

Realistic Expectations

Do twenty-somethings expect too much?

Yes, being twentysomething today can feel like death by unmet expectations, yet I believe it’s twentysomething’s belief in a bright, big future that might be one of their most important characteristics. As I write in Secret #19 in the book – I don’t think our plans and dreams are the problem. Our krizaaaazzzy timeline of how quickly we want those plans and dreams to be sitting on our doorstep with a big Christmas bow is the problem.

I thought the red carpet was going to be rolled out on day three of life in my 20s when God had that penciled in for Day 2,334. You know, for when I was actually ready for it. God has his timeline for your life. You have your timeline for your life. Some of the time those match—like on that one Tuesday in February, three years ago. But most of the time they don’t.

We could try and hold tight to the uncontrollable, gripping the details of our lives like a five-year-old trying to walk a rhinoceros. Or we can let them go and do their thing. We can drop them deep into the ground and water them with creativity, consistency, and patience.

Then when it’s the right time, we’ll watch our plans and dreams grow bigger, better and more beautiful than we ever could’ve planned.

20s Are For Making Mistakes

Many people say that your twenties are for making mistakes, do you agree with that? Why or why not?

Yes I believe the biggest mistake of our twenties would be never making any at all. However, there are two different kinds of mistakes that we might be referencing here. There’s making mistakes as if your twenties are a throwaway decade, and consistently doing the same carefree, damaging actions that are the igniters of your depression, anxiety, pain, etc.

To be real honest here, I went through about a two-year span of time in my early twenties where I tried to drown my complaints of the present and fears of the future with ripe amounts of alcohol. I wouldn’t say the mistakes I made in this timeframe were “good mistakes”. The mistakes I applaud are the ones where you’re going for something bigger than yourself – you’re reaching for a good job, starting your own business, creating something, putting yourself out there, and some things you’re trying are working and some aren’t. In this regard, we need to fail over and over, yet refuse to call ourselves a failure.

For a generation groomed for success, straight A’s, and following the syllabus perfectly down to every last word (then asking the professor for clarification on items 1., 4., and 7. – 11.), twentysomethings need to learn the art of failing well. The biggest risk of our twenties would be never taking any at all.

Accomplishments

What do you believe should be accomplished in your twenties? (Not just goal wise, also mentally and spiritually, etc.)

I believe asking yourself the right questions and beginning to formulate your answers is goal #1. Our twenties can feel like we’re being smothered in questions, but if we don’t ask the RIGHT questions, then we’ll forever remain stuck. Now what are the right questions? Well, that’s the million-dollar question. I wrote an article on my website AllGroanUp.com about the 11 questions I think everything twentysomething needs to ask. That could be a good place to start.

It comes down to being intentional about where your twenties are headed. Everyone lives with intentionality; it’s just that most people live intentionally unintentional.

The Inspiration Behind the Book

What was the inspiration behind writing the book? And how much of the book is from your own experience?

The inspiration behind writing about this unique, important time in our twenties came because I was struggling with finding answers in my twenties. I took to writing to find clarification in my own life and now I’ve been writing and researching about succeeding in your twenties for seven years.

However, it was one article called 21 Secrets for your 20s that I wrote on my website that became the catalyst behind this book. The article began sharing like crazy on social media, with 100,000 + pins on Pinterest being the main driver, and three days after posting that article my website crashed due to tsunami waves of traffic. I didn’t know such a thing was possible.

Then the emails started to flood in about the impact the article was having from readers all over the world with nearly a million people now having read it. There was something big and important taking place, and it needed its own room to grow.