Never fear, it isn't too late to dominate life. Here are the basics.

1. Build a camp fire

• Source fuel. Cloth from your clothes, lint from your pockets, paper, a deodorant stick, clapstick, some hand sanitiser or fluff from wool, such as cotton buds, are all effective fire-starters you may not have considered.

• Building boundaries. Surround the area with a nonflammable ring of rocks or something similar to keep it contained, retain heat and protect it from wind.

• Put it together. Don't hide the tinder, place it in a tee-pee shape. Ignite it with a lighter, matches or flint. Put more fuel on as the fire grows from a nearby stash. Don't waste fuel by building a fire bigger than is necessary for your needs.

2. Use Google effectively

Using Google correctly can change your life and your stalking habits. Anything you need can be found on Google, and anyone who tells you otherwise doesn't know how to google properly. With Google, you could write an article just like this.

• Narrow your search by using more specific keywords. (horse+riding)

• Place quotes around a term for an exact phrase. ("horse riding")

• Use the minus sign to exclude words from search results. (horse -breeding)

• Think of other ways to say what you are looking for.

• Drag an image you want into the Google Image search bar to find similar pictures.

• Check your spelling.

• If you are feeling wild, google "Google".

3. Perform CPR

One day you are just minding your own business when someone drops to the ground beside you. What do you do? Go and take a Red Cross class to find out.

4. Drive a manual car

When the only clutch you've heard about is the one that holds your money and keys, you may have an issue. Grab a friend or call your local driving school and get it sorted. You never know when you'll be in an emergency situation and the only way out is with a manual.

Oh, and if you can't drive at all and you are over 25, it is probably time you learned.

5. Do basic cooking

Looking into your fridge and finding a jar of seeded mustard, a bottle of Pinot Grigio and three-week-old Thai is not a sign that you are living a life of luxury. It's a sign you never learned how to cook.

Rice? No idea.

Spag bol? Call mum.

Boiled eggs? Call the pizza man.

It's time.

Here is a starting point.

6. Be able to tell a great story

If you open your mouth and people start playing with their phones, you probably could use a bit of help in the old storytelling department.

Need inspiration? Hansel nails it in Zoolander.

Or have a listen to Pixar writer and director Andrew Stanton, who has some golden rules for telling a story.

He says you need to make people care, take the audience with you on a journey using a promise to entice, have an intention, relate to your audience and let them like you and then delight them with your charms.

But if that all fails, you could just tell a dad joke.

7. Change a tyre

I hear what you are saying. Roadside assistance is just one little call away. Why would you get your hands dirty? Because you never know when you'll drive over a beer bottle in the middle of the Simpson Desert without a phone signal, that's why.

Learn right now.

8. Handle a job interview

You know the moment. Your face is flushed, your hands are sweating and you are muttering some line about "something something communication skills something something".

You are probably doing any number of these horrible things without even realising it.

Sort it out. You are too old and you've done too many of these to not own it.

Here are the tips you need to score your dream job, without crying in the toilet cubicle before.

And if they don't work, just learn this gold-star answer.

9. Remember names

Taking an interest in your company and new acquaintances makes you popular. People like feeling important, so when you make them feel important and in turn, they like you.

It can be as simple as paying attention. Or these little tips can help.

10. Travel light

After enough overseas trips to fill the pages of your passport, you'd think you would have learned that lugging a 28kg pack through Bolivia is not practical and generally ends in tears of pain.

• Make a packing list.

• Roll your clothes up.

• Wheels take up space and weight.

• Match your clothes into outfits.

• Take a zip-lock bag with detergent and wash your basics.

• Stick below 15kg in a pack and life will be a breeze.

• Take miniature toiletries.

The full light travel guide.

11. Swim

Living in a country surrounded by water, being a pro-doggie paddler is not really enough to get you through those hot summer days.

You are never too old to learn. Check out local AustSwim courses.

12. Parallel park

Like this. Easy.

13. Know your personal alcohol limits

It's happened again. You went out for "one drink" and the next thing you knew, you were eating a kebab at 3am in a drunken haze. The next morning, you swear this was the last time. Here is how to reach that goal.

• Drink with friends, not alone in the dark with your cat.

• Stay out of rounds that make you drink faster than your pace.

• Know yourself and your limits by paying attention.

• Buy alcohol by the glass, not the bottle so you can pace yourself.

• Set a concrete limit for the number of drinks you want to consume.

• Know how you are getting home.

• Don't drink when you are not in a positive mindset. No one wants a miserable drunk.

• Eat food before you drink. It will save you from hunting for that kebab store.

• Stay hydrated. Soda and vodka doesn't count.

More on drinking like a legend here.

14. Give a compliment

If you've mastered the points so far, you are probably a very awesome human being. But the best kind of human being is the type who builds others up. Knowing how to make people in your presence feel great makes you popular. It is pretty much a win-win.

• Be specific with your compliment. "I love your purple polka dot shoe laces".

• Be authentic. People can see through smooth words.

• Express your appreciation.

• 30 seconds out of your day could make someone's week.

• Don't give a compliment with the hope of receiving one back.

• You will appear more attractive and awesome.

Need more help? Click here.

15. Negotiate

This is the money-making skill. Learn this and get everything you want in life. Or at least get your bintang singlet for $10 less.

• Listening is a good start - it builds trust and respect. Hear what is actually being said.

• Win-win negotiators have the most success. What can you do so you both come out with a win?

• Find a common interest and they will want to give you more.

• Don't give up. Persistence pays off.

• Don't get too focused on one result - think outside the box and broaden your expectations. Is there another possibility?

16. Recite basic geography

If you don't know where the continents are, you probably aren't going to win at life. Or trivia.

The best way to learn? Travel or stare at this map for an hour.

17. Flirt without looking ridiculous

Read this. Or buy a lollipop.

18. Sew a button onto clothing

19. Type

In this day and age, not typing at a reasonable speed will slow your life down. One key per minute isn't going to get you a job.

Using messenger regularly, responding to personal emails at length or keeping a typed blog can all help with increasing your typing speed.

If you are under 50 words per minute (test here), it's time to sort it out.

Find a local course in your area or google for a free online course, like this one:www.typingweb.com

20. End a date politely without making promises

They looked better in their Tinder photo, and now you are stuck smiling politely and pretending you are not repulsed on a Friday night. One drink in. You forgot to set up the fake phone call saying your cat has died and then they suggest grabbing dinner. At McDonald's. Hit the emergency button.

Once you realise they aren't the man/woman of your dreams, state a specific time you have to be somewhere. Then when they ask you to follow up the beer with a meal, it is acceptable to say you won't be able to squeeze it in.

When saying goodbye, give them a handshake. It is a clear indication that this is the end of any potential romance.

Do not promise any follow up communication, or kiss or hug them. It sends the wrong message. But do thank them for a lovely time.

If you are feeling bold, tell them the truth. Otherwise scare them off. Talking about hot ex-partners, your dying cat that just had 21 kittens which you adore and can't give up, and your hope for a large family should do the trick.

21. Jump start a car