50 Observations about life from one who’s lived it

03/17/2026 by

Today, I am exploring observations about life.

All these observations reflect my own experience over many years. I’ve presented them as quotes, but they’re all about life as I see it.

You might see life differently, dear reader, and that’s fine. You might think I’m being a little cynical. Anyway, I hope they challenge your thinking, at least.

If, after reading them, you think I’m wrong, then that’s fair enough.

The important thing is that we constantly look at life and make sure we take care of our own interests, because I can assure you, no one else will.

So, without further ado, here are my 50 observations about life today.

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Observations about life:

  1. Be prepared to defend your civilisation or accept barbarism.
  2. If you want to attract the right person, you must be the right person.
  3. You can paint stripes on a horse, but that doesn’t make it a zebra. Pretend to be whatever you like, but it doesn’t change anything.
  4. Life is too short to waste it arguing with strangers on social media about something that doesn’t matter much and over which neither of you has any real knowledge or expertise.
  5. We’re all shaped by the environment that surrounds us in our formative years. We are the sum of those experiences.
  6. Politicians don’t work for ordinary folk. They work for whoever bankrolls their campaigns, and they represent their interests, not ours. To believe otherwise would be naive.
  7. Politicians should wear the names of their sponsors on their clothes, like Formula One drivers, and then at least we’d know who owns them and in whose interests they’re working.
  8. When politicians refer to investment, they mean spending public money to create a dependency, thereby securing future votes from those who become dependent on the taxpayer’s largesse.
  9. For every problem, there is a solution. If you can offer solutions for other people’s problems, you have the basis of a business. And your solution doesn’t have to be first to market; create a better solution, and you’ll still make money.
  10. If your life isn’t all you’d like it to be and you’re wondering who is to blame, look in the mirror.
  11. Your life can be better than it is, but it won’t change by accident, not unless you’re lucky. You must decide what you want, how you get to where you want to be, and then pursue your goals with passion and purpose.
  12. You can’t force different tribes to live together as if they are one and in peace. They will always be suspicious of each other. So, it doesn’t work.
  13. Every well-intended attempt to make the world a fairer place has precisely the opposite effect. The world isn’t fair, it has never been, and it will never be. We must all learn to play the set of cards life has dealt us as best we can.
  14. Leadership is not about optics; it’s about acting in the best interests of those you lead and represent. It’s not about what’s good for you; it’s about what’s good for them. If your actions are solely intended to benefit you, you’re not a leader; you’re just another grifter.
  15. Our forebears’ hard-won freedoms have been taken for granted for far too long. We must protect those freedoms and resist any attempt to dilute or dismiss them. Anything less would be an insult to the work of those who went before us.
  16. Your time is your most precious resource. Use it wisely and don’t let anyone waste it unnecessarily.
  17. Time and money matter, but time matters more because time is limited and we can never be sure about how much time we have.
  18. Only fools spend money they don’t have on stuff they can live without. It is a fact that unsecured debt becomes an expensive burden. Don’t be a fool.
  19. If you think any politician will improve your life, you’ll always be disappointed. The only person who can improve your life is you.
  20. Feed your mind with a healthy diet of everything that inspires you. Fuel your greatness.
  21. However much they can drive us nuts, our families are precious, and we should care about those relationships. Only when we’re in trouble and need their support do we realise just how much they really matter.
  22. Good people should matter to us all. They are the doers. They are the people who add value to others’ lives. People who make a positive contribution deserve our appreciation.
  23. Attitude matters. To an employer, an average person with a positive attitude is preferable to a clever individual with a bad attitude.
  24. An ideal life should have a purpose, a passion, and a hobby that helps us relax.
  25. With politicians, it’s essential to look beyond the rhetoric. What looks like an attempt to address a problem is usually nothing more than them trying to neutralise a political threat and placate public concern. It may fool the public, but it won’t change anything.
  26. Politicians are not ignorant of the problems, nor are they ignorant of the solutions. However, they also know that dealing with them effectively will come at a personal cost they are unwilling to pay. They say they care, but it is only for themselves.
  27. Those with real power won’t give it up easily and certainly not without a fight. There is an elite set of puppet masters behind the political system that will never just roll over and allow an interloper to waltz in and take their lunch. They will fight dirty, and the interloper will be squashed like a fly.
  28. It’s important to make a living, but it’s much more important to make a life. Having a sense of purpose is essential, of course, but it won’t look after us when we’re ill. Make time for family and friends.
  29. When politicians rob Peter to pay Paul, they do so knowing it guarantees their support from Paul. And if Peter wouldn’t vote for them anyway, he doesn’t matter.
  30. Fail to protect what is yours, and it will be taken from you. Slowly, almost imperceptibly at first, but gradually, the speed will rise, and suddenly you’ll wake up, and it will all be gone.
  31. Gaining knowledge and skills can be expensive, but not gaining them is even more expensive. 
  32. You have a right to live your life the way you like. And so does everyone else.
  33. Don’t assume politicians want you well-educated. They don’t. If you’re well-educated, you can’t be controlled. So, they want you sufficiently educated to do all the crappy jobs that need doing. Beyond that, they want you to remain as dumb as possible.
  34. Loneliness can only be beaten by getting out there and getting involved. You need to engage with other people, ideally people with shared interests and things you have in common.
  35. When politicians resort to smear tactics against their opponents, you know it’s because they themselves have nothing to say of value. They have no vision, no ideas, no solutions. In fact, they show themselves to be unworthy of your vote.
  36. Face your fears, or your life will be constrained by them. You can be more than you are, and you’ll grow by facing up to every challenge. It’s not too late to be all you could be.
  37. If you don’t have to prove yourself and earn your place, then that place isn’t worth having. If you get the prize just for showing up, it’s meaningless.
  38. The most valuable things you will learn in life you will not learn in a classroom or lecture theatre.
  39. We’re all inclined to believe lies that support our prejudices. That’s the fundamental principle that underpins newspaper sales.
  40. Judge not those who went before us. They were not of our times, nor we of theirs.
  41. Believe you have something to offer because you do. You have a lot more to offer than you realise.
  42. Make your own kind of music, even if no one sings along. Just be true to your own instincts for self-fulfilment.
  43. You cannot redistribute that which has not been created. Remove the incentives for the enterprising to work hard, and they don’t. And, before you know it, your economy is ruined.
  44. If it no longer serves you, let it go. Don’t be emotionally attached to stuff. Unburden yourself and get rid of anything you can live without.
  45. You’re not dead until you’re dead. So, now’s the time to enjoy life and make the most of every day.
  46. Those deployed to fight deserve our respect. Our safety and security depend on rough men being willing to do violence on our behalf.
  47. Mastering trendy dogmas and fashionable attitudes is not the same as having a rigorous education and developing the ability to think for yourself.
  48. We now live in an age when it’s perfectly acceptable to offend the many, because it’s completely unacceptable to offend the few.
  49. A shared identity, history, culture and way of life bind a nation. Lose those, and the nation will disintegrate over time.
  50. Never assume that politicians care about people. They don’t. They care about power, and once they gain power, they care about retaining it, particularly those on the left. People on the left see themselves as virtuous and those on the right as wicked. So, they will shamelessly do whatever it takes to retain power, regardless of how damaging their actions may be to ordinary citizens.
Phil Sutton

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VOICE OF EXPERIENCE: 45 life lessons everyone should know

05/31/2025 by

If you’re looking for some lessons from the voice of experience, then I’ve been on this earth long enough to have learned quite a few.

Usually, I share these lessons on my microblog, otherwise known as my X feed.

However, today I thought readers might be interested to read some of my more recent observations about life and the human condition.

Here are 45 life lessons I’ve learned, many of which I’ve learned the hard way, and I hope you find them interesting and useful.

Please feel free to share them with your friends.

VOICE OF EXPERIENCE
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Lessons from the voice of experience (1-10):

  1. On Spaceship Earth, we’re all crew.
  2. People believe what they want to believe.
  3. Visibility matters. Personal PR is essential.
  4. We’re all products of the choices we make.
  5. Life is life, and we cope with it as best we can.
  6. You can listen to the wise or let adversity teach you.
  7. You’re not committed to anything until you start taking action.
  8. Don’t underestimate the power of your voice. Your voice matters.
  9. If you don’t go for it, then you won’t get it. Not unless you’re lucky.
  10. Create your own job, and you’ll never be threatened by layoffs again.

Lessons from the voice of experience (11-20):

  1. A question asked does not imply an obligation to provide an answer.
  2. Your future’s yet to be written, but the good news is that you’ve got the pen.
  3. Political power derives from a group of like-minded people acting as one.
  4. Income does not determine your wealth if you keep spending more than you earn.
  5. You won’t regret the things you didn’t buy, but you may regret the things you didn’t do.
  6. Focus on where you’re going, not where you’ve been. What’s ahead is what matters most.
  7. Differentiate yourself from the competition. You won’t stand out if you’re just the same as everyone else.
  8. Your years on this earth will teach you far more than you could possibly learn in any school, college, or university.
  9. What you get out of life will be in direct proportion to what you put in. You’ll get very little out if you’ve put nothing in.
  10. If you don’t use it, don’t let it go to waste. Sell it. Someone else can use it, and you have a little extra money in the bank.

Lessons from the voice of experience (21-30):

  1. A promotion at work is not a reward for what you’ve done in the past; it’s an opportunity to show what you can do in the future.
  2. Just because they seem nice doesn’t mean they are nice. Don’t be too trusting of people you barely know. Trust must be earned.
  3. Ridiculous notions take root because the silent majority don’t have the guts to say, “No! I’m not playing that game.”
  4. Happiness is a state of mind. It’s finding a little joy in everything you do. Life’s challenges are there for all of us. Don’t let them steal your joy.
  5. We’ll keep making the same mistake until we learn the lesson the mistake was intended to teach us. Life is a classroom, and the lessons never stop.
  6. No one is right all the time, and it would be unwise to assume otherwise. So listen carefully to others before deciding on what you think may be right.
  7. If you want to make money, be the solution to someone’s problem. There will always be people with problems willing to pay someone to provide a solution.
  8. Never use other people just so you can feel better about yourself. Help people by all means, but out of genuine benevolence rather than your own self-interest.
  9. When others do unspeakable things that hurt you, the best revenge is to move on and enjoy your own happy life. Show them you don’t need them; it’ll drive them nuts.
  10. Real friends are people you could call at 3 a.m. if you were in trouble, and know they’d be willing to help you. Internet friends are nothing more than digital acquaintances.

Lessons from the voice of experience (31-35):

  1. We all want to be someone or something else, but we can only be the people we are and deal as best we can with the cards life has dealt us. Frustrating as it may be, that’s life.
  2. If society’s direction of travel is not to your liking, then make your voice heard loudly, in collaboration with like-minded people. If enough people speak, things can change.
  3. It’s for us to give our lives meaning. Our aim should be to leave a legacy by doing something that will add value to the lives of others and make the world a slightly better place.
  4. You can eat well, sleep well, get regular exercise, and drink plenty of water, but you’re still going to die. So make sure you enjoy life while you can, and don’t be too obsessed with healthy living.
  5. Never let anyone tell you how you should think. Think for yourself and draw your own conclusions. No one has a monopoly on knowing what’s best. Your opinion is just as valid as the next person’s.
voice-of-experience
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Lessons from the voice of experience (36-40):

  1. Remaining loyal to the circumstances into which you were born is not a noble act. It’s perfectly reasonable to want more out of life. Just because you were born poor doesn’t mean you must remain poor.
  2. Never, ever put anything in print that you wouldn’t want coming back to haunt you later. If there’s a record there’s always a chance that someone could use it against you when it suits them to do so.
  3. In a civilised world, physically attacking people is unacceptable, of course. So when we’re upset with others, we attack them with words. We lob ‘word bombs’ at them in the hope we’ll hurt them that way.
  4. To remain silent is to be irrelevant. A quiet life will come at a cost to you. The cost is that people with louder voices are moving the world in a direction you may not like. Speak up, or live with the consequences.
  5. Those with an unshakable belief in the virtue of their own opinions will never be swayed by contrary opinions expressed by others, regardless of how much evidence is offered in support of those opinions.

Lessons from the voice of experience (41-45):

  1. Unkind speech is not the same as hate speech. Much of what is often described as hate speech is just people saying things that are unkind and even deeply unpleasant, but they’re not necessarily rooted in hate.
  2. The game of Monopoly tells you all you need to know about getting rich. Use the money you have to buy assets that will generate income. Use that income to buy more assets to generate more income to buy more assets to generate even more income. Keep repeating the process, and you’ll get rich.
  3. Ideological positions don’t have to be accepted without question. They can and should be challenged. If they have sufficient merit they’ll withstand a challenge. If they don’t, they’ll fall, as they should. Don’t allow yourself to be intimidated by ideologues.
  4. The university system has become a racket. Unless your ambition is to secure a job for which a degree is mandatory, you’re wasting your time and money by going to university. You’re unlikely to get a return on the debt you’ll incur. Consider your options carefully.
  5. Successful relationships are underpinned by friendship, and friendship is a relationship of equals. Both parties must feel they’re getting what they need from the relationship. So before asking, what can a potential partner offer me? Ask yourself, what do I have to offer a potential partner? If the answer is nothing positive, don’t be surprised if you struggle to find a partner.
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