Dicey Advice

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the advice we pass down.

Some of it is useful. Some of it is outdated. And some of it is simply inherited without ever being questioned.

That’s been on my mind as I think about my own kids. They are walking into a world that is moving faster, louder, and stranger than the one I grew up in. So I started asking myself a simple question.

What would I actually tell them now?

That is what this week’s article is about.

Any questions or comments? Just shoot me a note.

JP

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Advice for My Kids in 2026

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the advice I would give my kids right now.

Not the advice I’d put in a book or from a stage. The advice I’d give sitting across from them at dinner, hoping they hear me.

The truth is, I don’t think the advice I heard growing up is enough anymore. It wasn’t bad advice. Work hard. Be honest. Get an education. Find a good job. Save your money. Treat people well.

I still believe in a lot of that.

But the world they are walking into is different from the one I walked into. Jobs change faster. Technology moves faster. Money disappears faster. Attention gets stolen faster. And a lot of people are quietly wondering the same thing.

What am I supposed to do now?

So, for my kids, here’s where I’d start.

Don’t wait for someone to pick you

This is a hard one, because most of us were trained to wait. Wait for the grade. Wait for the promotion. Wait for the boss to notice. Wait until you feel ready.

Please don’t do that.

Do good work. Be respectful. Learn from people who know more than you. But don’t spend your life waiting for permission. Start the thing. Send the email. Make the call. Ask the question. Create the project. Put your name on something. Try before you feel completely ready (you’ll never be ready until you do the thing).

Most people are not picked because they are perfect. They are picked because they showed up long enough for someone to notice.

So…ask for the sale, and as Tom Hanks says in his life advice, throw deep.

Question what you inherited

Do not believe something only because someone you know or loved believed it first.

Ask yourself...

Why do I believe this? Where did this idea come from? Who benefits if I keep believing it? What evidence supports it? What evidence challenges it? Would I still believe this if I were born in a different country, a different family, or a different time?

That applies to faith. It applies to money. It applies to work. It applies to politics. It applies to success. It applies to what a “good life” is supposed to look like.

If something is true, it can survive your questions. If something is useful, it can stand up to examination.

So question what you inherited. Keep what is true. Keep what is useful. Keep what makes you more loving, more courageous, more honest, and more alive.

But do not keep something just because you were handed it.

Be known for something

You don’t need to be famous. In fact, I hope fame is never the goal. But I do want you to be known.

Known as dependable. Known as thoughtful. Known for caring about something. Known for being good at something specific.

That matters more than you think. People talk and opportunities move through people. Your reputation can open so many doors…but it can also close them.

If you say you’ll do something, do it. If you make a mistake, own it. If you care about something, keep showing up for it. Over time, that becomes your name. And your name matters.

Build something that belongs to you

I hope you have good jobs. I hope you work with good people. I hope you learn a lot from the places that hire you. But I also hope you build things that are yours.

That could be a side project, a small business, a body of writing, a newsletter, a podcast, a product, or a skill that travels with you wherever you go.

It doesn’t have to be big. It just has to be yours.

A job can help you grow. A paycheck can give you breathing room. But I don’t want your entire future sitting in someone else’s hands. Build a little bit of independence while you can. One small asset at a time. One useful skill at a time. One trusted relationship at a time.

That’s how options are made.

Learn money before it teaches you the hard way

Money isn’t everything. But money problems can touch almost everything. They can affect where you live, who you stay with, what work you take, what stress you carry, and how free you feel to make a better choice.

So learn the basics early. Spend less than you make. Avoid credit card debt like the plague. Save automatically. Invest regularly, even when it feels boring. Don’t buy things just to look successful. Keep some cash available. Understand taxes. Know what you owe. Know what you own.

And please remember this: looking rich and being free are not the same thing.

A lot of people have nice cars, nice trips, nice clothes, and no room to breathe. I don’t want that for you. Buy incredible experiences. Be generous. Have fun. Just don’t let your lifestyle quietly put you in a cage.

The point of money is to give you choices.

Use the tools, but don’t lose yourself

You are going to have technology I never had. Use it. Use AI. Use the apps. Use whatever helps you learn faster, work better, and save time.

But don’t let any tool do your thinking for you.

The world doesn’t need more average. It doesn’t need more copy and paste. It doesn’t need more people saying the same thing in slightly different words. It needs your judgment. Your taste. Your questions. Your humor. Your experience. Your weird little way of seeing the world.

Don’t give that away.

Use the tools to help you move faster. But make sure the final answer still sounds like you.

A good example? AI helped me edit this post, but the thinking and ideas are mine. Never lose that.

Protect your attention

This might be one of the most important things I can tell you. Everyone wants your attention. Your phone wants it. Social media wants it. Streaming services want it. Work will want as much of it as you are willing to give.

But your attention is your life.

What you pay attention to shapes what you think about. What you think about shapes what you do. What you do shapes who you become. So be careful.

Read good things. Spend time with people who make you better. Go outside. Move your body. Learn to sit quietly without grabbing your phone. Don’t start every morning by letting the world yell at you.

You do not have to respond to everything. You do not have to have an opinion on everything. You do not have to be available all the time.

Protect your mind like it matters.

Because it does.

NOTE: I hope you noticed the difference in me when I deleted the social media apps off my phone. I feel different. I think I’ve acted differently. I’m wondering if you’ve noticed.

Choose the people around you carefully

Who you spend time with will change your life. Maybe not all at once, but slowly and absolutely.

Spend time with people who tell the truth. People who keep their word. People who are kind to waiters. People who are happy when something good happens to you. People who make you want to be better without making you feel small.

And be that person for others.

Life is too short to keep proving yourself to people who don’t really want the best for you. The right people will challenge you, love you, tell you when you’re wrong, and still be there when things get messy.

Find those people. Keep those people. Be one of those people.

Build your version of a good life

There will never be a perfect time. You won’t have perfect information. You won’t feel completely ready. You won’t know exactly how it turns out.

That’s okay.

Almost everything good in my life came from starting before I had it all figured out. To be honest, I’m still figuring life out. I love saying “I don’t know” to things. I love when new questions come up. Life is so interesting.

So take the trip. Start the project. Ask for help. Say the thing. Make the change. Leave the room if you need to. Begin again when you have to.

And please remember this. I don’t need you to live my version of a good life.

I want you to build your own.

I want you to be healthy. I want you to be useful. I want you to be loved. I want you to wake up most days with some sense that your life belongs to you.

That’s the goal.

Not perfect. Not easy. Yours.

All my love…Dad

P.S.: A reminder that I'm giving away my book, Burn the Playbook, for free. Please share it with a friend. If you don't want to fit in, this could be your (or their) roadmap.

This Old Marketing Podcast

In this week's This Old Marketing, Robert and I talk about the big changes at OpenAI and whether they smell of innovation or desperation.

Until next Friday, keep building something that matters.

JP (Joe Pulizzi)

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