“If you could go back in time and give yourself one piece of advice, what would it be?” It’s a great question one that I’m often asked.

It causes one to reflect on the past and to think back about where your blind spots might have been. The idea is that your life path might have changed positively in some way if you had only known this one detail.

There is one piece of advice I would give myself if I were to go back in time, and I’ll share it with you: You’re not too young. You’re not too young to do that job. You’re not too young to manage people. You’re not too young to start a business.

Fortunately, I believed that having a lack of experience wasn’t a deal breaker. I often applied for jobs that I was technically underqualified for because I knew that I could perform the role. I didn’t let the job description hinder my search. But this didn’t hold true when it came to my age.

On a few occasions, I was given incredible opportunities that I turned down because I assumed that I was too young. I assumed the person offering the opportunity didn’t understand that I wasn’t old enough to do those jobs.

For example, I interviewed as a senior in college for an engineering job at Motorola. I was looking for a fulltime job after graduation. One of the interviewers was so impressed that he asked me if I would consider a manager job. I immediately declined.

There was no way I should be managing other people at 21, or so I thought. I delayed managing people for six more years.

But there was no reason not to try sooner. You don’t have to be a certain age to try things.

Some of the best managers are those who started very young. They have so much more experience and learned much early on. People will give you a chance when you are young. They’ll forgive your mistakes. It is harder to get this sort of opportunity for the first time at an older age.

I have heard from many job seekers who face this fear same fear. They assume they are underqualified and will have no chance. Honestly, it makes sense.

Job descriptions are an impossible wish list that includes many years of experience. In fact, I’ve never seen a job description for a manager role that doesn’t call for management experience.

Whether you want to become a manager, or whether you want to start a business, don’t assume you are too young. When you’re young, you have less to lose. You can try things and, if you fall down, there’s time to get back up.

But you’ll learn many valuable lessons along the way and be better for it in the end.

Angela Copeland, a leadership and career expert, can be reached at www.angelacopeland.com.