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Having now turned 30, it doesn't seem all that bad.  In fact, it's a bit of a relief as I feel more secure in myself than ever before.

I TURNED 30 & THIS IS WHAT I LEARNED

  • 17th January 2018
  • Wellbeing
  • by Dominique Waller

At the end of last week, I turned 30. I’m not going to lie I was pretty terrified!  The gap between your 20s and 30s seems exponential and I wasn’t sure how ready I was to take that leap.

Having now turned 30, it doesn’t seem all that bad.  In fact, it’s a bit of a relief as I feel more secure in myself than ever before.  For this post, I thought I’d share a few lessons turning 30 has taught me.

Comparison is the thief of joy

Cliché but so true.  I spent a lot of my 20s comparing myself to my peers and benchmarking my successes and failures against theirs.  This was such a waste of time.

Success is built upon many things, one of which is happiness.  Being happy is fundamental to a successful life.  By wasting energy on constantly comparing yourself does no one any good.  Besides, everyone’s talents lie in different places, while you’re fretting over not being good enough about one thing, you’re not noticing that you’re excelling somewhere else.

Love Yourself

We’re all blessed and lucky in one way or another and it’s essential to appreciate that.  I wasted too many years fretting and crying about not having a smaller nose or being 4 inches taller.  At the end of the day, who cares?!  The truth is there will always be someone prettier, wealthier or skinnier than you.  Love what you have, try to make the most out of it and use your positives to your advantage.

I wrote a whole post about the best ways to believe in yourself which you can read HERE if you want to know more about self-belief and self-love.

Appreciate Those Around You

Relationships, whether it be with family, friends or a partner, are incredibly important and it’s so easy to undervalue them.  Whatever you do, don’t throw them away.  I did way too much of this in my teens and 20s by skipping out on people’s birthdays or constantly forgetting to call and/or text people back.  I lost some amazing people, all because I was too busy or self-involved.  I forgot that relationships are not all take, they require hard work, patience and plenty of nurturing.

I’ve been lucky and managed to rebuild relationships with some amazing people but I’ve also lost people I wish I hadn’t.  Put effort into your relationships and you’ll be rewarded with people who truly care for you and will always have your back.

My Birthday Outfit

Totally changing the subject, for those that are here for the fashion, this is the outfit I wore to my 30th birthday party.  I really wanted to buy a new dress but I either couldn’t find anything I liked or everything was ridiculously expensive.  Instead, I delved into the depths of wardrobe and found this BCBG Runway dress which I bought over a year ago and STILL hadn’t worn.  You might remember a similar dress in white which I blogged about HERE and HERE and purchased at the same time as this one.

I’m absolutely obsessed with this dress!  It’s lace with fringe and stars, 3 of my favourite things, so it couldn’t have been more perfect for such a memorable occasion.  It just goes to show you don’t always have to buy something new to feel special.

I’m so glad I invested in this dress when I did (even though I didn’t have anywhere to wear it to at the time) as it saved me having to buy something I either didn’t love or was way out of my price range.  There is a good lesson here, if you see an incredible dress and fall head over heels in love with it, buy it!  That way when you a special event arises you already have something amazing to wear and it takes off the pressure of having to find something.

Although the dress was old, the shoes were new (check them out HERE).  I knew from the moment I saw these around six months ago I HAD to have them.  They’re so sculptural and I’m obsessed with them.  I realise they’re very similar to my other Saint Laurent Opyum pumps (see them HERE) but I couldn’t resist.  Also, unlike the other ones these are much easier to walk in.  It feels exactly like wearing a wedge, only most of the wedge is missing(!), which you can’t even feel when they’re on your feet.

If you’ve been ummm’ing and errr’ing between these or the Opyum pumps I would recommend these every time.  They’re stunning to look at, easy to walk and a perfect conversation starter!

Don’t forget you can also keep up with me on Instagram @thatnewdress, Twitter @thatnewdress, Bloglovin That New Dress, Snapchat thatnewdress and Depop @dominiquew.

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88 Responses to “I TURNED 30 & THIS IS WHAT I LEARNED”

  6. Kasie

    Happy birthday, beautiful! What an incredible look, the dress, the shoes, it’s all perfection! I’m now 32 and have to say your reflections on turning 30 are spot on. I’m still working on remembering all of them myself, so this was a great reminder. I hope you’re having a wonderful week!

    18th January 2018 at 4:18 am
  23. Mercy

    What a perfect birthday outfit babe, I like it that there’s a story of this dress and that makes it more special. Those shoes are really something, I wish you put the link of them (or did I miss it?). Have enjoyed reading the lessons learned too and they are actually gem having reached that age myself many years ago 🙂 Here’s wishing you for many more birthdays to celebrate and more fabulous outfits to rock. Cheers!!!

    http://www.busyandfab.com

    19th January 2018 at 12:32 am
  28. Tina

    Happy Birthday babe and all the best for you!!! 🙂
    I hope you had a great day and cant believe you turned 30! I’m tunring 28 this year and also already a bit terrified I must say 😉 haha
    But all your points are so true, and especially comparing is not a good idea – we all need to learn that I guess 😉

    Loving your heels by the way -what an eyecatcher!!! ♥

    xxx
    Tina

    https://styleappetite.com

    19th January 2018 at 1:04 pm
  34. Alyssa

    Next month is my birthday, I’ll be 25! It may not be a big leap as 30 but I’m kinda terrified as well. I think mid-quarter life crisis is slowly creeping in LOL anyway, Happy Belated Birthday to you! And wishing you all the best and happiness 🙂

    xx Alyssa | STYLE VANITY

    20th January 2018 at 9:18 am
  81. Saida - She talks Glam

    First of all happy happy birthday Dominique, hope you had a fantastic one! Second of all, I absolutely adore how you styled this dress with the moto jacket and those unique pumps. Pure perfection and awe! I couldn’t agree more with your lessons as well, especially nurturing relationships and tell the people we value in our lives how much they mean to us. Happy weekend, dearest Xx

    Saida | She talks Glam

    27th January 2018 at 9:09 pm
  82. Biki

    First things first- Happy Belated Birthday hon!
    Secondly, I can see why you’re obsessed with this dress, the deets are gooorge, can’t believe it was tucked at the back of your wardrobe. But I love find pieces that I’ve stashed away.
    Also sounds like you’ve learnt some valuable lessons and wishing you a great year ahead! ( :

    28th January 2018 at 5:36 pm

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Meet Dominique - the happy-go-lucky woman behind the London lifestyle, fashion and beauty blog, That New Dress™. Accompanied by her adorable chihuahua Simba, Dominique keeps us in the loop with the latest fashion and beauty trends as she stylishly stumbles around London. Learn more

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