Happy Wednesday, friends! As I was brainstorming ideas for this week’s blog posts, I had a thought run through my head. “Man, I wish I had known this before I started adulting. Why does no one ever tell you that?” I’m sure we’ve all been there!
Whether you just graduated from college, or you graduated a few years ago, I think this blog post could still apply to you. Listen — we’ve all been there. We’re all making our way through the world of adulting together. We’re like one blob of humans trying to figure out how the world works!
I wanted to use today’s blog post as a way to share 5 super random, but relevant things that I’ve learned while adulting. Given, I’ve only been out of college for a little over a year. So, in the grand scheme of things, I really don’t know much, but I know a little bit! That doesn’t sound very reliable, but hey, I’m just keepin’ it real.
Let’s get started!
Watching the news and staying up to date about current events should be something you work into your routine.
When I first moved out on my own, I sucked at staying in the know about what was going on in the world. I’m sure I’m not the only millennial who refuses to pay for cable — streaming T.V. shows and movies is where it’s at! But, I will say that one of the things I miss the most about not having cable is watching the evening news every night.
It was always my thing back in Ohio. After eating dinner, I would always watch the news, every single night. It’s the kind of memory that I’ll hold onto forever, ya know? Anyways, like I said, when I moved out on my own, I legit had no clue what was ever going on, which isn’t good!
It wasn’t until the start of the new year that I set an intention to be more in the know. So, I turned on my push notifications for one of my favorite news outlets from back home and I signed up for Refinery29’s This AM app. This app is awesome because it gives you 8 news headlines alongside corresponding stories that give you the full scoop when you swipe up.
In addition to that, I also signed up for The Newsette, which is an awesome email that lands in your inbox every morning around 10 a.m. with three of the most interesting current events in the fashion, beauty, lifestyle and entertainment industries. I’ve also started watching the evening news a day late on my streaming provider, but hey, it’s better than where I was at before!
It’s okay to treat yourself and not feel bad about it.
Ever since I moved into the work force and am now surrounded by people of all ages, I’m starting to realize how pessimistic some people are. If being negative is your thing, then own it! I’m not going to try to encourage you to be positive if it’s not your thing. In regard to that, I’ve definitely learned that when it comes to treating yourself, everyone has their own opinion about it. Some people have more of a work hard-work hard mindset than I do, and I definitely believe in treating yourself whenever you feel it’s necessary.
Truthfully, if I really want to buy a new perfume or spend an evening watching movies and painting my nails instead of going out, I’m not going to feel bad about it! There is still peer pressure once you graduate from high school and college, but honestly the best thing to do is just ignore it and do your thing. Who cares what anyone else thinks! If you want to treat yourself, do it and do it proudly! I know I do!
If you aren’t the best at cooking, find a resource that helps you be sort of decent at it.
This is a big one for me. In college, I was pretty good about looking up recipes and coming up with new dishes on the fly based on what I had in the fridge. However, when I moved out on my own, that all changed drastically. Not even joking — for the first two months of adulting, all I would make for dinner was some version of stir fry, gluten-free spaghetti or chicken with Italian seasoning. Blah, so boring!
Once I came back after Christmas, I knew something needed to change because my schedule was too jam packed for me to condense all of my recipes into a grocery list. Okay, if I actually made the time for it then yes, I could do it, but for me, this alternative works better for my schedule. I subscribe to Sunbasket, which is a meal delivery service where you pick three organic meals for the week. Because I’m just one human, I can generally get about six meals out of each delivery, so it helps me eat healthier while working with my schedule.
This isn’t me telling you to subscribe to a meal delivery service, but I will say that it has definitely helped me out immensely.
Learn how to distinguish when something is or isn’t wrong with your car.
This is a big one for me because I legit know nothing about cars. I understand the basics, but I’m no wizard of mechanics. If you’re like me and you lack knowledge in this department, educate yourself!
Watch some YouTube videos about how to replace your windshield wipers, because you’re going to want to know how to do that! Oh! And make sure that you buy a good tire gauge and find a nearby gas station to fill up your tires when needed.
Most importantly, when you legitimately don’t know, ask for help. Whenever I take my car into the shop for a maintenance check, I give them a list of anything weird that I’ve noticed so that they can check. Yes, it might be nothing, but at least I’m being proactive!
It will always get better!
The real adult world is a scary place that will knock you down more than once. Sometimes you’ll feel like you’re lost and that you have no idea what you want to do and where you want to be, and that’s okay! Even on some of my worst days when I’m ridden with anxiety and stress about things that seem so stupid now, I make sure to take a deep breath and refocus my energy into positivity.
My optimistic nature has been one of those things that I’m so happy I brought along with me into my adulting journey. Everything takes time, and honestly, no one has it all figured out. We’ve all just gotta be ourselves and the rest will fall into place.
Well, that is all for today! I hope that you enjoyed this super random blog post! I’ll be back on the blog this Friday with another new post for you!
Until next time!
Alicia <3