1. Niyatii N Shah, 50, sexuality educator
A good gift to yourself on your 30th birthday? Leaving behind the myth that sex should always be spontaneous. In long-term relationships, intimacy may sometimes need intention and planning. That doesn’t make it less exciting or meaningful. Desire can be influenced by stress, exhaustion, hormones, mental wellbeing, body image, relationship dynamics and life. It deserves curiosity and understanding, not shame. So, start asking better questions: What do I enjoy? What feels good and comfortable to me? What are my boundaries? Can I communicate honestly with my partner? Do I feel emotionally and physically safe? Am I making choices because I genuinely want to—or because I feel pressured to? Stop trying to fit into someone else’s definition of sexuality and start understanding your own.
2. Sohrab Khushrushahi, 43, co-founder of The Func Lab and SOHFIT
By the time you’re 30, you should aim to be physically capable rather than simply fit. Can you carry your own luggage up a flight of stairs? Lift a heavy grocery bag in each hand? Get up from the floor without struggling? Go on a light jog without feeling exhausted? Play a sport with friends on the weekend? All of this reflects strength, mobility, cardiovascular fitness and independence in real ways. Fitness shouldn’t just prepare you for the gym; it should prepare you for life.
3. Kanav Mata, 41, Director & Regional Head, India, South Asia & Middle East, EHL
I could read a room long before I could read myself. That is what working in hospitality does to you in your twenties. You learn to spot the guest who is about to complain, the colleague who is about to crack, the table that needs the bill. You learn to be pleasant on your own worst day. You get very good at other people. And then someone asks how you are, and you genuinely do not know. I wish I had known that noticing yourself is a skill too, and that my body is not invincible.
4. Christina Furtado, 33, illustrator and animator
I cannot emphasise how important box breathing is. Any type of breathing exercises, really. Every time I feel overwhelmed, I use it to calm my nervous system. I wish I’d known this when I was in my 20s, which are turbulent for most people.
5. Manvi Gandotra, 40, founder & creative director, 1Plus1 Studio
I don’t make important decisions when I’m emotionally flooded. I’ve learnt that sometimes the most intelligent thing you can do for yourself is absolutely nothing. Don’t send the message. Don’t quit the job. Don’t have the conversation. Don’t make the big decision at 11.30pm. Go to sleep. Take a walk. Make coffee. Most things look different after you’ve given yourself a little distance. And if they still feel wrong the next morning, it’s worth acting on. One sign of growing up is knowing how to pay attention to how your life feels, not just how it looks.
6. CG Salamander, 35, children’s book writer and editor
Wear better shoes as you grow up. Don’t contort yourself into uncomfortable positions while working on the bed or sofa. No one prepares you for how your feet and back start to feel after you’ve crossed your 20s.
7. Dr. Prateek Kadian, 33, general physician
Even before you hit 30, crunch your numbers: Your blood pressure, waist circumference, blood glucose and cholesterol. Yes, before anything has even happened. So you can make corrections while they’re still small – a 1kg weight gain, instead of 10kg. And get comfortable with strength training so the muscles stay with you as you grow.
8. Naiyya Saggi, 42, co-founder and CEO of Everyday Design & Technology (EDT)
Young people tend to believe that resilience means being able to absorb everything – every stressor, every work problem, every new challenge. As you grow up, learn to not absorb every shock. Know when to ask for help and when you’d like to step away from a situation that you may not be equipped to handle.”
9. Anisha Anand, 47, food stylist, curator and co-founder of Aurum Foods
By the time you’re 30, you should have made peace with the fact that your body is not supposed to remain frozen in time. There will be changes in your skin’s elasticity, your energy levels, muscle mass, even how and where the body stores fat even though you’re doing the same things you always did. And that’s OK. You don’t have to love every change, but respect your body. Stop measuring your physical self against the who you were a decade ago.
10. Khushali Chawda, 35, interior designer and co-founder of ACKM Studio
A sure sign of growing up: Designing your world for the life you live. I got myself automated curtains that are timed to open at 5.30am, so I wake up gradually with natural light rather than an alarm. Transitioning into your mornings instead of being shocked into them really changes your day.
11. Ajaaz Rasheed, 32, DJ and co-founder & principal designer of lifestyle brand Ludic
You know what grown-ups do without embarrassment? They get bored in public. Young people are scrolling through six different feeds at any point. If, by 30, you can sit somewhere with no phone, no headphones and no agenda, you’ll learn to tune into you. You’ll watch people move, observe the architecture, notice the environment. It’s what forms connections between the real and virtual world and builds creativity. Creative energy is usually the first thing to go when you’re running low, and it goes quietly. You don’t stop working, you just start making safer choices and reaching for references instead of actually thinking. Doing nothing is a way of topping yourself up.
12. Enayatullah Safi, 38, chef and founder of Dhaba Indian Kitchen
Don’t make eating well more complicated than it needs to be. The first responsibility of food is to nourish us. So, even amid the chatter about diets, calories and protein, ask yourself, ‘What is this food giving to my body?’ Not every meal has to be perfectly healthy. Leave room for celebration and indulgence. At an age when no one’s checking on your every meal, strike a balance between eating for nourishment and eating for pleasure.
13. Arouba Kabir, 39, counselling psychologist
Few people figure out, by 30, that it’s OK and often necessary, to disappoint people in order to take care of yourself. This means leaving the party early, declining a drink, not taking on a commitment , and opting out without explaining yourself. Instead of weighing the social consequence (“What’s acceptable to these people?”) weigh the consequences to yourself (“What does my body actually need?”). More honesty will bring less negotiation – that’s how grown-ups do it.
14. Akshay Verma, 40, co-founder of fitness platform FITPASS
No one in their 30s is living the same day as a 20-something. If daily workouts seem impossible, try the 6-7-8 approach: Six workouts in the first month, seven in the next and eight in the third. You’d be surprised that just twenty-one workouts over 90 days can leave you feeling more mobile, alert and active. It worked for me.
15. Sarah Thomas, 32, filmmaker and director-founder of STOM Productions
A big sign of maturity is separating your physical self from the voice inside your head. Pick a day in the week to go off the grid. Use that time to review your life: Why did I react like that? Why does this affect me? Which patterns keep repeating? What is working in my life, and what isn’t? People in their 20s are trying on different versions of themselves – they forget to be kind to themselves through the process. That kindness inevitably changes how you see other people too.
16. Rahul Jhangiani, 35, fashion and celebrity photographer
Don’t worry if a hack seems unhinged. If it works, it works. I sometimes put my phone on airplane mode while it’s literally in my hand. There’s something satisfying about knowing nobody can reach you even though you technically haven’t gone anywhere. Even 30 minutes of being completely unavailable feels like a mini holiday.
17. Nikhil Kapur, 49, founder of Atmantan Wellness Centre
One of the biggest myths I had to leave behind in my 20s was that more training means better results and that you can out-train poor nutrition. Training hard while consistently eating too little is not discipline, it’s under-fuelling your body, which goes into survival mode instead of regulating your hormones and keeping you healthy and happy. Sometimes, the smarter thing you can do for your body is actually to eat enough, recover properly, and give it a reason to perform.
18. Arefa Tehsin, 46, naturalist and author
You know what has reduced my mental pressure and increased my pleasure considerably? Leaving a book that I am not enjoying unfinished. All through childhood, I felt obliged to finish every book I started. To move out of this self-imposed rule feels liberating. And this applies to everything else, too – don’t do something because it’s part of some real or imagined list.
19. Sana Raees Khan, 30, Supreme Court lawyer
Looking back at my 20s, I realised that I was not just on a professional treadmill, but on a mental one as well. So, I started setting boundaries and guarding my personal time more intently. Constantly making yourself available, especially early in your career, is a way of showing your commitment. The biggest change in my wellbeing occurred after I learned to say ‘no’ if something was not necessary.
20. Sneh Jain, 40, co-founder and managing director of The Baker’s Dozen
Build your own health rituals as you turn 30. I go on treks every year, and I’ve started aiming to go about 500 feet higher than I did the previous year. This has unconsciously pushed me to train better and stay in shape in anticipation of the journey.
21. Mari Karsikas, 46, Senior Director of Product Science, ŌURA
For young people, self-care is often reactive: A spa weekend, sleeping until noon, taking a long break to fix weeks of stress, a big feel-good splurge. Those in their 30s have a different idea of self-care: Small, daily routines like eating dinner a bit earlier so your body gets more restful sleep, building a wind-down routine, knowing which warning signs your body gives out before you hit total exhaustion. Somewhat boring, but highly effective.
22. Atul Mongia, 47, acting coach, writer and filmmaker
Here’s an old-people tip that not enough young people use: Walk 500 to 1,000 steps after every meal. You’ll feel more alert and lighter and those post-food blues won’t set in.
23. Ritika Mody, 62, Hindustani poet
A good skill to learn, as the years wind up to 30, is to figure out which baggage is yours to carry. I used to dwell over every little comment for days, replaying it in my head. I’ve long stopped feeling like I owe every conversation a reaction. I actually like hearing different opinions. People see things differently because they’ve lived differently. I can talk to anyone now without bringing their opinion of me back home.
24. Harun Robert, 48, artist
Small hacks are everywhere. By 30, you should be open to trying them out, rather than pining for someone else’s ideal. If you’re not a gym person, get a walking pad. I now complete my 10K steps while working on my art, attending work meetings and calls and walking indoors when it’s raining. I wish I’d thought of it earlier.
25. Neha Motwani, 40, founder of Luma Fertility
If I could go back to my 20s, I would tell myself to pay as much attention to my reproductive and sexual health as I did to fitness, nutrition and overall wellness. The option to freeze your eggs exists, understand the science and make that decision from a place of information rather than urgency or regret later on in life.
26. Eshanka Wahi, 37, culinary nutrition and holistic wellness coach
No one turning 30 should live with the notion that sleep is negotiable, that you can make up for weekday quotas on the weekend, or that waking up fresh on three hours of rest means it’s all you needed. Prioritising sleep changed my life. I started looking forward to bedtime instead of treating it as the last unavoidable task of the day. It was light off, phone out of the room, sometimes a bit of calming oil rubbed into my palms, and an hour or two of just… nothing. Eventually that turned into actually going to bed at a decent hour.
27. Rajat Jadhav, 30, co-founder and CEO of Bold Care
In India, men usually start facing sexual-health challenges in their late 20s or very early 30s, and when an issue suddenly shows up, they panic. Erectile dysfunction is like a warning sign that can signal cardiovascular problems, diabetes, or high BP. Get tests done early on.
28. Alankrita Sahai, 32, actor and model
Learning to be comfortable in your own company is also a form of wellness. I now go for a walk alone, watch a movie by myself or sit in a coffee shop solo. I used to feel guilty about taking these breaks, as though rest was something I had to earn.
29. Swagatika Das, 41, CEO and co-founder of personal care brand Nat Habit
Stop wearing clothes that don’t fit. A tailored blazer or better-cut jeans aren’t just about how clients see you, it’s how you see you. Not having to adjust or worry about your outfit makes you calmer, confident and frees you to deal with the important things.
Priya Malik, 37, poet
30. Turning 30? Leave this behind in your 20s: The notion that you have to be available for someone just because they asked. My sense of wellbeing improved drastically when I turned off all notifications on my phone. Interruptions no longer decide how I use my time – I do. I respond when I have the time, attention, and bandwidth to do so properly.
From HT Brunch, September 19, 2026
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