I’m Excited To Turn 30 And Here’s Why You Should Be Too
I’m excited to turn 30 next month, but the truth is, I never used to be.
Because we constantly hear – and believe – that turning 30 is game over. That’s the end of your life. The end of everything good, and everything fun.
Getting drunk, coming home at 5am, then going out the next night and doing it all over again. Eating pizza for breakfast and not paying the consequences. Being single, not knowing where you’re going in your career, not owning a house yet, and feeling like you don’t have to explain yourself to anyone; because you’re still in your twenties.
Approaching 30 coincides with your Saturn return, which usually happens between the ages of 27 and 29. This is when Saturn returns back to the planet it was in your birth chart when you were born. And it’s often said to be a phase in our life that takes us from being a child, to being a grown up and taking full responsibility for ourselves and our lives.
If we embrace it, and take ownership of our lives and go after what we really want on a soul level, then we can find our way to a beautiful, fulfilling life we’ve always dreamed of.
But if we fight it, or ignore the lessons, our lives can begin to fall apart, and we’re left wondering where to go from here.
And for many of us, it’s the latter.
If you’d asked me ten years ago where I’d be by the time I was 30, I would’ve naively said married, with kids, in a house of my own.
And guess what?
None of those things are true for me today. But I’m happier than I’ve ever been.
Over the past three years, I quit my job as a fashion designer to become a writer, and I travelled the world. I’ve written and published several books, led retreats, and started and grown my own business. And I also found a man who I adore with all my heart, and can see myself spending forever with.
But I was on the phone to my Mum last week, and we were talking about my upcoming 30th birthday. And she recalled, “I remember I felt really depressed when I turned 30. I’d just had you the year before, and I felt very old.”
Ouch. Double blow. Thanks, Mum.
The younger me would’ve let a comment like that bring me down, but I – maturely – let it roll off me. Just because someone else had a negative experience, it doesn’t mean my own experience has to be the same. I get to choose how I feel about everything. And so do you.
I’m genuinely excited to turn 30, and here’s why.
I’m doing what I love each day
It took me a long time to figure out what my soul came here to do in this lifetime. A lot of years feeling like something wasn’t quite right, feeling frustrated, and like I didn’t really belong.
But since becoming a writer and starting my own business, I get to wake up each morning and do what I love. I design my own schedule, I spend time on things that matter to me, and I finally have a sense of purpose. And I wake up with, and go to sleep with, a man who makes every day even better than it already is.
I’m doing what I love each day, and it feels amazing. And I can’t wait to do more of it.
I feel calmer and more centred than I ever have
Everything felt so up and down, and turbulent during my teens and twenties. One moment I was on cloud nine, and the next I was crying for three days straight.
As you get older, you often start to balance within, and mellow out. And this creates a sense of inner calm and stillness. The kind of feeling that you get from meditating, except this becomes your new normal, instead of a fleeting feeling you only get during the 10 minutes when you’re sitting cross-legged in silence.
I worry less about things that I used to constantly fret about like money, relationships, and my appearance. Because things that I used to think mattered no longer do.
And I’m excited to turn 30 because I’m sure this will only magnify in the years to come.
I know what I want, and what I don’t want
We’re a world that idolises youth, and readily discards people once they’re reached a certain age. But with age comes powerful wisdom, knowledge, and experience.
In your twenties, you’re still very much figuring yourself out. Who you are, what you like, what you want, and what you don’t want. But by the time you near 30, you’ve often done a lot of that soul searching, and you have a much clearer picture of yourself, and the kind of life you want to live.
You know what you’re willing to tolerate, and what you’re not. You know what you deserve, and you’re no longer prepared to settle for any less than that. And even if it doesn’t feel like it, you’re well on your way to creating the life you dream of.
That’s why your thirties are so empowering and liberating. Because you’ve done the hard work. You’re stronger, more confident, and you won’t take anyone’s bullshit.
Now is the time to reap the rewards.
I’m excited to turn 30 because it’s a fresh start
Between the ages of 10 to 20, you’re still in school for most, if not all of it.
But your 20s are different. You finally finish school, and you’re off in the big bad world, trying to figure everything out. And those 10 years can feel really long.
Honestly, I feel like I’ve been in my 20s forever. I can’t believe I’m still not 30 yet.
And I’m more than ready to say goodbye to this decade of my life, and welcome in a new one.
Turning 30 is like a brand new chapter, a fresh start, a new beginning. And it’s full of wonder and possibility and hope and magic.
I’m ready to wave goodbye to all the heartbreak, anxiety, and fuck-ups; and say hello to a fresh start.
I can’t wait to see how I grow
My twenties were a decade of trying things out, seeing what fit and what didn’t, making mistakes, learning from them, and trying again.
I failed so many times at so many things. But I picked myself back up and carried on. And I’m thankful for all those experiences, and how they’ve shaped who I am today.
When I look back and think about how much I grew in the past ten years, I’m in awe. Even looking back at who I was four years ago, I can hardly recognise that woman. Because the growth I’ve experienced has been huge.
I’m excited to turn 30 because just imagine the growth that awaits me ahead. I might buy my first home, get married, or even become a Mum. Who knows what my business will look like a few years from now, let alone in the next 10! Who knows what I will witness, learn, and experience. And who knows how that will change and shape me.
I have no idea what the universe has on the cards for me in the next decade. But what I do know is, if I want what awaits me, I have to be willing to say goodbye to my twenties and lovingly leave them behind.
And that doesn’t fill me with dread or fear or sadness. It fills me with excitement and hope and a sense of adventure.
My twenties were a blast. I’m thankful for the woman they made me.
But I’m excited to turn 30. And I hope you are, too.