This morning I gave a speech at a high school. I spoke to the year 12s, who have about 3 months left of school before finishing their final exams and graduating. I’m over 5 years out of high school os someone thought I must’ve had some experience to share!

I spoke about my time since leaving high school, including going to University, changing degrees after a semester, getting work experience along the way, trying to build a few businesses and entering the corporate world. My best advice to a youngster is to continuously look for ways to improve yourself.

Some of the best ways for 16-20 year olds to improve themselves are:

• Get a job. Work experience is vitally important at an early age. It gives you exposure to the real world and you’ll learn some basics when it comes to working with money and dealing with people. Also, you need many different experiences to draw upon when you’re going for more important job interviews and answering those behavioural/situational/experience quesitons.
• Start reading. I feel like reading has had a big impact on me in the past year or so. You can check the books I’ve read here. Reading has definitely expanded my horizons and I’d suggest everyone read a few personal development or self help sort of non-fiction books.
• Build a business. Te best way to learn how to real world works in my opinion. Start by trying to sell something small or sell a service. You’ll be forced to learn the ropes of sales, marketing, branding, project management, and a hell of a lot of interpersonal skills. Don’t invest a lot of money, just do it for the experience.