Several years ago, Helen Rosner posted a (now-deleted) Twitter thread about the best bits of wisdom she’d accumulated by her 40th birthday. It was full of gems, like “Love always takes work, but it should never take suffering,” and “Sure, everyone’s body is beautiful, but a much more liberating realization is that, also, everyone’s body is disgusting.”

I love bites of advice like this; small, sharp insights that make life feel a little bit clearer (see also: Joanna Goddard’s Pro Tips [don’t forget to read the comments] and Kevin Kelly’s 68 bits of unsolicited advice.).

Whatever you call them—pro tips, life lessons, unsolicited advice—here are my best pieces of wisdom, collected over my 41 years:

1. Don’t loan or lend something (a book, a sweater, a thousand dollars) that you aren’t willing to gift to that person. If you aren’t prepared to lose it, don’t let it go.
2. Keep a bottle of bubbly in your fridge so that you’re always ready to celebrate—your news or someone else’s.
3. Always offer to take a photo for strangers so that everyone can be in it. (People say yes 95% of the time or more!).
4. Get (and use) a clothing shaver, quality lint brush, small mending kit, and shoe care kit. Your wardrobe will look great for ages and you will probably appreciate your clothes more.
5. Take care of your teeth and your feet. They’re difficult and expensive to fix.
6. Ordering a dish “for the table” when you dine out with friends is always the right choice (for me, that usually means fries at dinner and pancakes at brunch).
7. Record the voices of the people you love, film them, photograph them. You will be glad to have these memories one day.
8. If a chore or task will take less than 10 minutes, don’t put it on a To Do List, stop thinking about it, and just do it.
9. Always bring a gift when you’re a guest, even if you’re visiting your parents or an old friend. It doesn’t have to be big or expensive to be appreciated (e.g., a bar of chocolate, homemade cookies, a nice-smelling soap, a picture of your kids, or a bottle of olive oil).
10. Keep a stick of butter in the freezer. When a baking recipe calls for cold cubed butter, grate the frozen stick with a cheese grater.
11. Good quality merino wool socks are a great gift for anyone over the age of 30.
12. When you fly, take a few extra carry-on liquid bags from the security line so you can pack your toiletries exactly right next time you travel.
13. Always send a thank you note—for gifts, for favours, for kindnesses. An email or text will do, but handwritten is best. I always hear from people that they’re thrilled to get unexpected personal mail.
14. If an activity calls for a helmet or a lifejacket, wear the thing and wear it properly (unclipped helmets? Lifejackets on the floor of the boat? No!).
15. This one is from my Nana: the good things are meant to be used. Drink the good champagne in the fine glassware on the velvet sofa. As Joan Didion said, “every day is all there is.”

What about you? What’s your best advice? To which little life lessons do you keep returning?