So you’re twenty-something, you decide to move out of your parents’ house. And now what.
I don’t know about you, buuuut how do I adult?
Yes I understand that “adulting” is not a verb, but I mean, it really should be. Paying bills, booking yourself appointments, filing taxes. It’s scary stuff man.
Though it may just come from the fact that I’m introverted and shy, talking to strangers on the phone genuinely stresses me out. Yes it’s silly, but it’s a shitty thing I hate dealing with.
Sad to say it, but you can’t opt out of adulting. It has to happen. So why not try and make it a little easier on ourselves, hmm?
How To Adult: A Life Guide
1. Find Resources
With today’s technology, use those online apps and websites to help you get things done! We’re all tech savvy, right!? Book appointments online if they have a website that allows you to do so. Set up automatic withdrawal to pay your bills. Use TurboTax for your taxes! This saved me tons. Because let’s be real, I have no friggin clue how to do my taxes, and there’s no one here to teach me.
2. Practice That Autograph
There’s nothing that makes you feel more dumb than going to sign for something and all that shows up is a bunch of chicken scratch. Practice your signature, come up with a style that works for you, and that way you won’t feel like a third grader who just learned cursive every time you sign the cheque.
3. Take Care of Yourself
Eat nothing but organic, cut out all carbs and sweets and run 10k a day. Hah no thank you. But sadly enough, that metabolism does slow down when you get into your twenties, and when you buy your own food, it’s easy to go for the cheap, quick stuff.
Having the power to buy your own food can be fun. Start to incorporate healthier foods into your meals, and try a workout that involves something you enjoy doing.
Well. That’s all I’ve got for you today, because well, I’m still learning to adult myself, hah.
It’s scary moving out on your own, taking full care of yourself for once and dealing with the real world. I just want others to know that they’re not alone. It’s scary to go from mommy and daddy dealing with the big issues, paying for the necessities in life, to taking that all on yourself when you haven’t really learned how yet.
This part of our lives, our twenties, becomes such a huge learning period in our life. Learning how to truly take care of ourselves, learning who we really are, who we want to be, and what we want to do with our life. Hah, let’s be real, do we ever really figure out what we want to do with our lives?
Ah here’s me just struggling to adult. If I’m alone in this that’ll make me feel mighty pathetic, so please let me know your adulting struggles as well. We can all band together and be adult friends who drink wine and stuff. That part I know I’ve got down pat.
4 Comments
Hey girl,
I’m 35, married for over 10 years, and I have three kiddos, and I’m still learning to adult, man.
Sometimes a kid comes to me ‘cuz I’m the adult in the room and it’s a big slap in the face from reality.
Learning is a lifelong journey, and I’m glad I’m still learning to adult. I hope I’m still learning to adult well into my 80’s. And I hope the child within is alive and well through that whole time.
For the record, I worked to help at home and was pretty self-sufficient since I was 16. If I still have to learn to adult, then pretty much everyone is allowed to take their time 🙂 And yes, adulting definitely should be a verb!
Here’s some other stuff that helps me adult:
YNAB (app/website; $) – Budgeting software. Budgeting is one of the most important things for anyone who doesn’t want to live life trying to pay off debt. The software costs money, but it’s worth every penny.
Home Routines App ($) – Helps me to keep track of all the never-ending chores around the house. There’s a minor price tag and it’s worth it.
AnyList (Free) – I can tell my phone to add items to my grocery list the minute I know I’ll need to buy something.
Evernote (Free/$) – Helps me to keep track of all the scattered thoughts in my brain. There’s a paid and a free version.
ChoreMonster (Free) – Helps my kids want to do chores. You can collect little monsters as a reward for doing chores, and you can get other rewards as well. Pretty neat.
Scheduled alone time/weekend off – I get a weekend off, completely free of responsibility, every year. It’s awesome. I also get at least 15 minutes each day where I get some alone time to do something calming. I picked up drawing recently, and it’s super relaxing and fun at the same time.
Happy adulting!
I’m glad someone feels the same aha! Thanks so much for all the productivity tricks, I’ll definitely have to check them out!! 🙂