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30 Things Everyone Should Know How to Do Before Turning 30

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Competence. Now in convenient book format

30 must-have life skills every capable adult should perfect before turning 30.

You’re old enough to own property and have a family, but can you safely open a bottle of champagne? Or change a flat tire? 30 Things Everyone Should Know How to Do Before Turning 30 provides idiot-proof instructions for mastering these and other essential, face-saving, and possibly life-saving skills.
You’ll learn how to...
1. wrap a present
2. start a successful fire in a fireplace, at a campsite, and in a barbecue
3. finish a piece of furniture
4. get a raise
5. order wine at a restaurant without getting stiffed
6. parallel park in three breathtakingly beautiful movements
7. dance a “slow dance” without looking like an idiot
8. use a full place setting properly, including chopsticks and Asian soup spoons
9. clean your place in under 45 minutes, when friends, relatives, or prospective lovers are coming by unexpectedly, and soon
10. hold your liquor
11. cure a hangover
12. do the Heimlich Maneuver
13. use a compass
14. change a flat
15. jump start a car
16. open a champagne bottle
17. send a drink to someone’s table
18. cook one “signature meal”
19. whistle with your fingers
20. take good pictures
21. fold a fitted sheet
22. remove common stains
23. sew a button
24. carve turkey, lasagna, and birthday cake
25. hold a baby
26. change a diaper
27. keep a plant alive for more than a year
28. make dogs and cats love you
29. help someone (an older or ill person, a woman you’re trying to impress, your mother) out of a car
30. write superior thank you notes

336 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

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About the author

Siobhan Adcock

5 books90 followers
Siobhan Adcock is the author of the novels The Barter and The Completionist. She lives in Brooklyn.

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5 stars
11 (19%)
4 stars
10 (17%)
3 stars
25 (43%)
2 stars
9 (15%)
1 star
2 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Profile Image for Harris.
1,080 reviews31 followers
November 23, 2020
This was a fun, breezy, one could even say helpful read. As the big 3-0 approaches, I checked out Siobhan Adcock's witty list of thirty skills to improve your life as your young adulthood (theoretically) shifts to straight adulthood (one might hope) looking to pick up a few tips. I definitely found a few, as well as some laughs. The book includes both good things to know, such as how to sew on a button (hey, I just lost one on my sweater, how convenient!) or perform the Heimlich maneuver and humorous “skills” like knowing how to hold your liquor or dance a slow dance. I found her advice on cleaning your house in under forty-five minutes when company is coming with short notice to be especially good. However, a few of the instructions were a bit, er, opaque, and the lack of comprehensive diagrams made following them a bit difficult (I found this out the hard way with her instructions on gift wrapping). While I wouldn't attempt to carry it into the woods with a compass and rely on only its instructions to get me out, Adcock's writing style is endearing enough to make even the most common sense skill (finishing a piece of furniture, removing common stains, or holding a baby) entertaining.
Profile Image for J.
2,103 reviews
April 22, 2008
Ok-just re-read this book cover to cover instead of just scanning the chapters I wanted to learn like I did a few years ago when I got this book as a gift. I think this book grows on you. By 29 I think you really will want to know how to do these things-but if you buy the book at say like 26-you will think it's stupid, boring and useless. It's funny b/c now the book is dog-eared and highlighted to death and just a few years ago I shelved it and thought, "ah-it's just ok-I don't know if a lot of these are that big of a deal."

Profile Image for Corinne.
388 reviews6 followers
November 30, 2012
Cute concept, poorly written. The voice is irritating and self-righteous. I know for a fact there are other books out there that use the same concept. I know this because one was recommended to me and I picked up this one by accident. Don't make the same mistake! Oh and although I didn't find this until well into my 31st year, I managed to survive without it. A few of the lessons were clever or useful, but the voice just annoyed the hell out if me.
Profile Image for Kyle Strickland.
Author 5 books1 follower
December 2, 2012
This book will help you appear smooth at the most, and at the worst it can keep you from embarrassing yourself.

Even though I never owned dogs, I was able to convince a prospective employers loud and protective terrier to take a nap at my feet during the interview. It was because I read this book. You never know what knowledge can be useful.
Profile Image for Bekah.
432 reviews45 followers
April 11, 2015
I bought this when I had just turned 20 but waited until the eve of my 30th birthday to read it. I was pleased to have already known/learned a majority of the topics, but the topics I didn't know about were really rather helpful. I actually paused reading to go and try folding my fitted sheets, now that I knew a better method. It was a fun and informational book. Not a necessity, but nice.
Profile Image for Robert Bickers.
29 reviews38 followers
September 15, 2011
#9 is one of the best tricks I've come across - worth the price of the book all by itself.
Profile Image for Louise.
61 reviews
July 12, 2020
Read this for more than a month. I’m not proud of it but it’s just very detailed. Some things mentioned here are not really recommended for a 20-something Filipino who doesn’t own a car yet, like me. Got 20/30 things everyone should know how to do before turning 30. Got 2 years and 10 months to go to learn the other ten.

And yes, only 3 stars for this book because it’s boringly written.
Profile Image for Jrumrill.
10 reviews
Want to read
June 3, 2010
Oooh! This looks good. I can do all the practical ones (change a tire, jump start a car, parallel park), but I've never sent a drink to someone's table and I can't whistle through my fingers! hehe, that sounds fun!
Profile Image for Carrie O'Maley Voliva.
327 reviews15 followers
February 21, 2012
I'm already 30, but I thought it best that I know what I "should know how to do." The problem with this book is that the instructions are hard to follow. Step-by-step instructions for how to change a flat tire are great, but I'll just get them out of a car manual when I need them.
Profile Image for Patrick.
15 reviews51 followers
November 9, 2008
Ich war traurig, als ich entdeckte, dass der Illustrator nicht gutgeschrieben wurde.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews

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