While I eagerly await the day for technology to build a time machine to let me  return back in time to have a drink with my younger self, I can only look back and think about all of my experiences in the past years. There are many things I would love to tell my 25-year-old self. I have learnt so many things through trial and error that sharing some of my experiences would be enlightening for 25-year-old me. Here are some of the things I would say.

Be confident

In the working world, no one really cares that you just graduated with a Bachelors or that you are a young professional at the age of 23 that can code in 15 different programming languages. Everyone expects you to to step up to the plate, be competent and be mature. Be confident of your knowledge and expertise. What you have done to get to where you are is a product of your own hard work. Be confident of that, because if you are not, no one else will be.

Make friends in the office you work at

Many people spend a lot of time at work and on work. Having people you get along with well and share interests with outside of the office is a good way to build positive relationships with others. Working is much better when among friends. A report on Australia’s Gen Y workforce suggest that Australian workers prioritise friendship highly in the office. People are happiest when they are able to do things they care about with people who like and care about them. Building productive friendships in the workplace can lead to new opportunities and memorable experiences.

Failure is not the end of the world

Treat each failure as a learning experience. Everyone meets failure eventually and treating it with dignity and grace is very important. What is important when you fail is to remember that it is not the end of the world. Take risks and push yourself to do things you did not think you could do. Sometimes, the most remarkable successes start from colossal failure. None of this colossal failure is permanent; pick yourself back up and get running again!

Take it slow

Relax. Life and careers are slow events that need to be approached from a long-term basis. It is easy to be impatient when you are young. Rushing through jobs and promotions for the next big thing will leave you exhausted and unmotivated. Sometimes, just sit still on a boat and just follow the flow of the river. By the end of the journey you might realise things that you never knew were there. Cherish experiences, not accomplishments.

I may not be able to turn back the time to speak to my 25-year-old self, but hopefully some of this advice may be useful to up and coming professionals looking to carve their way through a career path in the IT or Digital Media world. Enjoy the ride as it will be a long and fruitful one!

What are some of the things that you’d like to tell your younger self if you could travel back in your time machine? Is there any advice you might add? Share some of your experiences with us in the comments below.