Growing up is hard. Ask my fellow millennials who time and again dwell on childhood nostalgia by rewatching Harry Potter too many times to be considered appropriate for an adult, and flushing away the anxiety of the grown-up world with iced mochas.
Gen Z’ers are also resistant to becoming adults, and you may wonder why. While people tend to put blame on the way these generations are, researchers point out that it’s not a developmental stage; it’s the economy.
There’s even a corner of Reddit titled “Adulting,” dedicated to those who’re “actively trying to be more of an adult.” Created back in 2015, the community is sharing anything from tips, victories and questions related to the complex world of adulthood and trust me, it sometimes feels like a work of art.
This post may include affiliate links.
Especially shoeboxes. I have to go thru my "stash" every once in a while and take them out to the recycling bin. They always seem to be good to have to store misc stuff in, but I rarely do.
There are plenty of reasons why some people don't want to grow up. For some, it's the fear of responsibility and the unknown. For others, it might be the comfort of childhood and the simplicity of life. And then there are those who just don't want to let go of the carefree days of youth.
No matter the reason, it's perfectly understandable why someone would want to hold on to their childhood for a little while longer. After all, growing up is hard work. And who can blame someone for wanting to take a break from all the adulting?
Sadly accurate. Some of the same kids who were like this in high school are going down the insane Facebook conspiracy route.
I try to tell people that the point wasn't too remember *all* of it, just to get the jist. You never know what you're going to need in life.
"I'll never use any of this stuff-" Yes, you will. You may not use those details exactly, but you will use the skills you gained in learning about it. You won't solve algebraic equations, but you will learn to problem-solve with a set of steps to take you to an answer you can check. You won't write the great novel, you won't read poetry for fun, but you will understand how to recognize and read a variety of genres, how to concentrate even if you don't "like" it and glean information, how to analyze a text and its resources, and how to ask critical questions. You won't necessarily become a theorist or historical researcher, but you will learn to recognize tropes, patterns, lies, shifts. You won't play clarinet professionally, but the hours you spent practicing and learning musical scales helped your brain develop more complicated thinking. The brain's second-biggest growth happens during ages 12-25ish. Yes, you need to learn "this stuff" b/c you need to learn how to LEARN.
To be fair, a few years ago had to use the Pythagorean Theorem to measure my parents' dining room for two corner hutches. I was grateful to have aced Trigonometry that day.
Load More Replies...
On that note, can we mostly teach things that are useful? In one of the required-to-graduate math classes at my school, we had to learn a type of equation that's pretty much only used in the field of light science, so unless you plan to become a light scientist, it's practically useless. But would be useful is like, idk, a sewing class. Do they have that? Ofc not. (Granted, with this generations obsession with fast fashion, we'd probably just throw stuff away and buy new :/ )
On that note, in the USA at least, our country is a mess, in part because no one seems to even realize that we have a constitution. Trumpers I'm talking to you.
Load More Replies...
What's really sad is the people I knew in HS that aced these classes are the ones that don't believe in global warming and were posting all the crazy c**p about vaccines and screaming about wearing masks. Their idea of "research" is googling.
I've mentioned before how much I love the "I did the research!" idiots. If your butt did not move from your chair/bed and laptop, you did not "do research." Research involves methodology and a rubric, a hypothesis to test, control groups, lit reviews, funding, writing up multiple reports, presenting at conferences, and publishing in peer-reviewed journals. Not a single anti-vaxxer did real research, and that includes the granddaddy of them all, Andrew Wakefield. They did a bit of looking around for a few things that fit their existing world view, and claimed that was "research." It's not. Real research means you will always alter your thinking about a thing in some way.
Load More Replies...
But trigonometry?? Algebra? I've still yet to find any purpose for those in life.
It's about HOW to think/problem solve. It teaches your brain certain problem-solving steps.
Load More Replies...
"did my research online" by watching YouTube, listening to one-sided podcasts, etc. pfft! GTFO
However, as a person who LOVES science and reads quite a lot of science magazines, and likes to go to the source for science articles (rather than reading news about science, which often gets the research wrong), one thing that really annoys me is when people say "You can't argue with this! It's SCIENCE!!!!" BS! Of COURSE you can argue with science! That's the very nature of science. We should NEVER be afraid of people who question science, even "established" science, because when people debate about science we think we know, one of two things will happen. 1) We can present the facts again, and maybe we won't convince the chronically skeptical nor the paranoid, but we might convince someone else ... especially a young person (and isn't that always awesome?). 2) We look again at facts we think we know and see an error or fallacy we never noticed before. Either way, doubt is a powerful teaching and learning opportunity.
Hell yes. Science is jot one uniform bunch of people who all think alike. It is a huge conglomeration of people who like to disagree, live to disprove, argue and question. It is why there was so much disagreement about masks in the beginning of the pandemic, and about the origens and why we have four or so different vaccines. When i sa "trust science", i mean trust the Research when the method is sound and the sample-size is bigger than 10. Trust how science works - not what *one single* scientist says. Trust the "maybe", "probably" and "ad far as we know". Not the "definitely", "absolutely" or "without a doubt"
Load More Replies...
I dropped out of school after barely passing ninth grade, and I never believed that utter nonsense. think it has more to do with the environment you live in and the things people choose to hear that makes them believe all that garbage.
I didn't take biology, chemistry, and other basic science classes (I was referred to other classes due to learning issues! ) I'm 74 and know all those things and many more practical life lessons! Please don't throw us under the bus.
Ok but I'm standing my ground with math. Beyond basics and suff leading up to calculus, unless you have a job that requires you use sin/cos and all that letter math, it's useless. When will I even need to figure out the square root of anything? Of course having been a biology major I was tortured with extra math as well as physics (which is basically another form of math) so I'm pretty bitter
The molestation that I suffered causes a disease that causes lifelong crippling of every joint in my body. Why did my parents say that I suffered strep throat and let him off scot-free?
Golly, doesn't EVERYONE get their medical advice on Autism from a former playboy bunny?
Baaaaah, do the research dummy and stop drinking the Koolaid. It's obviously messing with your head in a very negative way.
My sister, with a bachelor's in electrical engineering, does not believe in global warming.
It is apparent that people only want learn what they know in advance will be useful. That pretty much means learning to tie your shoelaces. And then someone invented Velcro straps.
Same thing with economics. Most voters would fail Econ 101 nowadays. Which is why the government keeps on making stupid economic decisions.
I had to take all three in school. Didn't learn much though, the content was, most of the time not useful. Calculating the braking distance - come on, not everyone wants to become a police officer. When a friend of mine (a chemistry student) told me "the washing surfactants cannot unfold at 90°C water temperature", I asked myself why no one ever told me this essential information in my chemistry class.
Strongly suggestive of adults who are the products of either a Waldorf school education or a backwoods school taught by a senile old person.
I assume you never had to write your own resume or care about anything going on in the world.
Load More Replies...
Others are doing the exact opposite and trying to find ways to grow up sooner and embrace their adulthood. The truth is it takes a lot to be a responsible, independent adult. It’s a good idea to start by accepting that adulthood is not perfect and that there will be ups and downs along the way.
Another way to embrace your adult self is to not wait for someone else to make you happy – focus on finding joy in your own life. Taking responsibility for your own happiness is quintessential. At the same time, learning to manage your finances, the earlier the better, is very important.
The last tip may sound pretty boring, but you’ll thank us later. Being proactive about your health is a must. Try to improve your diet, add exercise in your life, and get regular checkups. Adulthood is the time when you realize that there’s nothing more important than your health and wellbeing.
Pretty sure it was an extrovert masquerading as an introvert.
Then you have Rose and Jack on a piece of floating wreckage.... there was room for both of you!!!!
Having said that, researchers have noted that youth these days seem to delay their transition to adulthood. According to Nancy E. Hill, a developmental psychologist at Harvard University, it has more to do with being able to transition to the workforce than the perceived apathy of youth.
“Young people reach adult milestones later when jobs that lead to financial independence are scarce or require additional training. The well-paying manufacturing jobs that were abundant in the 1950s did not exist in the 1890s. In the early 1900s, the U.S. transitioned from a largely agrarian economy to an industrialized one, and many young adults moved from rural to urban areas in search of modern industrial jobs,” she explained in The Atlantic.
Good. There’s no reason for this anymore in 2022. (And don’t come at me with “oh yeah but men are more _____ and ____ than women, and women will probably be on their periods or something and women can’t pick up heavy boxes while pregnant so let’s not pay them properly) or whatever the current argument is. Just no 😊)
Having said that, Hill argues that young adults are not less mature today than in the past. “Neither are they necessarily more self-centered. A new developmental stage is not necessary to account for the extended time that many youth need to make the transition to adulthood,” she argues.
“Our findings tell us something important: When young adults take longer to achieve the markers of adulthood, it is not that something has changed about them; it is that the world has changed,” Hill concluded.
I was just thinking earlier today how I'd talk to my friends on the phone for hours when I was a kid. What in the world did we talk about for so long? Now I only answer the phone if it's my boss or a call I'm expecting.
I thought I was the only one getting excited over this...my SO keeps telling me I am lol
My biggest realisation/adult moment was that the teaspoon I threw in the sink last night is still there in the morning.
I don't remember the exact date and time when I went from "OH, BOY! The PHONE!" to "Damn, what now?" Haven't been excited about the phone for years now . . .
When You Have A Big Project At Work But Choose To Reorganize Your Desk, Clean-Up Your Email, And Perfect Your Voicemail Greeting Instead
Lol. Like, during the weekend, I start doing something I've been meaning to do. But I get side-tracked on so many tangents that at the end of the day, I find I never finished what I originally started out to do.
I haven’t raw dogged some shuteye in way too long, I relate to this :(
Yup. Grew up with a friend that became a 2nd grade teacher at age 27 and she parties HARD, I’ve personally dragged her home at 2am like “you have to hang out with a bunch of 8 year olds tomorrow, you need your wits about you ” hahaha (before some of you start picking this apart, she’s fantastic honestly, definitely handles her business at all times and is very professional but just likes to live her life on the wild side)
Having a healthy attitude just means thinking to yourself "At least this'll make a good story later" when something goes wrong.
White boomers went to college for the price of an orange and were given a house for the price of a pineapple.
Been there, done that. Now I’m mad at myself for throwing away perfectly good Tupperware.
I don't know how my parents did it . . . 3 kids and no where near as many appliances as today. Yard work, cooking and laundry must have been continuous!
Yes. Especially with the god-damned American school system. I know the meme's not about America specifically, but since I'm American and don't know what it's like elsewhere, I can only speak for myself. But the schools here just teach you how to make someone else richer, to conform, to work in a factory, and not to collaborate with others. I mean, there's hardly any other time in life outside of school that you'll be in a situation where you can't collaborate with others, so why not encourage it in school? They don't want you to succeed, they want you to conform. Anyways, fun rant :(
Note: this post originally had 120 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
Me at 45: 20 years more before retirement. I can at last get paid to rest and stay at home! Canadian Government: Gen X, your retirement age is at 70.
I thought it was 67....or is that just for us "late boomers" ? Never mind it's still the stuff of poverty unless you're pensioned at work or married to someone who is.
Load More Replies...
I guess adulting is a bit like any other skill - no-one is perfect at it. I've been with my partner for nearly 36 years, we own our own home (well, the bank still owns a chunk of it), we have an 18 year old heading off to uni next year, I'm reasonably expert in my specialist area and have been in my current job for 12 years. Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick. BUT... I'm still too scared to learn to drive so don't have a license. BTW I'm not saying doing all these things defines you as an adult - just that at face value it makes me look quite grown up (once I even got the yukky bits out of the plughole with my BARE HANDS).
hey, you make me feel good about learning to drive at 20. here in USA, most people are learning at 14/15. if you can live without it, don't judge yourself. :)
Load More Replies...
I'm officially scared to grow up. I already was but yeah.
Oh, adulting isn't quite that bad. Of course, I'm on the far side of it now---70 y.o.---but I did work for 52 years, have been driving for 58 years (parents taught me at the age of 12), have had, and lost, two children. Was married, but been happily divorced for over 40 years, and don't plan to go that route again. There's been a ton of stuff over the years, some of it really awful, like when my children died. But for the most part, it's been a good life, and I look forward to more of it, no matter how little might be left.
Me at 45: 20 years more before retirement. I can at last get paid to rest and stay at home! Canadian Government: Gen X, your retirement age is at 70.
I thought it was 67....or is that just for us "late boomers" ? Never mind it's still the stuff of poverty unless you're pensioned at work or married to someone who is.
Load More Replies... I guess adulting is a bit like any other skill - no-one is perfect at it. I've been with my partner for nearly 36 years, we own our own home (well, the bank still owns a chunk of it), we have an 18 year old heading off to uni next year, I'm reasonably expert in my specialist area and have been in my current job for 12 years. Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick. BUT... I'm still too scared to learn to drive so don't have a license. BTW I'm not saying doing all these things defines you as an adult - just that at face value it makes me look quite grown up (once I even got the yukky bits out of the plughole with my BARE HANDS).
hey, you make me feel good about learning to drive at 20. here in USA, most people are learning at 14/15. if you can live without it, don't judge yourself. :)
Load More Replies... I'm officially scared to grow up. I already was but yeah.
Oh, adulting isn't quite that bad. Of course, I'm on the far side of it now---70 y.o.---but I did work for 52 years, have been driving for 58 years (parents taught me at the age of 12), have had, and lost, two children. Was married, but been happily divorced for over 40 years, and don't plan to go that route again. There's been a ton of stuff over the years, some of it really awful, like when my children died. But for the most part, it's been a good life, and I look forward to more of it, no matter how little might be left.
