6 Adulting Things No One Prepares You For

And this is only just for phase 1 of adulting…

Summer is over, and so it’s time to factory reset to regularly scheduled programming- I mean adulting. Here’s the first adulting lesson I learnt the hard way — That your unemployment phase is one of the best phases of your life, and ironically you might never get to enjoy it because you spend the whole of it praying to be employed.

I’ve been working for over a year now, and I cannot believe there was a time my days went, sleep, wake, eat, read a book or watch a movie, sleep, wake, sleep, ‘god I need to apply for jobs!’, stress-eat, sleep. Adulting comes at you fast.

Anyways, here are other adulting things I was not prepared for.

1.

There is no time for extracurricular activities. You get 24 hours, 8 of which you work, 8 of which you sleep, and you have to fit any other thing you have going on in your life into the remaining 8, including showering.

2.

Still on the same subject, your weekends are a give or take. You either use it to catch up, or you use it to relax. You don’t get to eat your cake and have it.

3.

You assume you’re going to have a lot to budget with. Adulting? You mean the thing that results in bills? There is always something to pay for, and in phase 1 of adulting, you don’t get much to start with. So you’re either living your best life or have no life at all.

4.

There is a lot to do, especially since you’re in phase 1. You want to travel, you want to save, you want to move cities, you’re looking for a better job, you want to buy yourself nice things, keep up with your loved ones, you’re looking to build a career, so many things you want to do in your remaining allotted 8 hours. You remember how parents tell you, ‘read your books now, you’d enjoy your life when you finish school’, they probably meant ‘years’ after you finish school.

5.

It’d be a while before you learn how to maintain a work-life balance. If I were to use myself as a case study, it’s been over a year now and sometimes I nap after work and the next thing, I’m waking up in the morning, and I need to get ready for work again. Sorcery? No, Adulting.

6.

People move. People leave. Perhaps the saddest thing so far. One day, everyone’s in the same city, and the next, they’ve found a job in Alaska, and you’re watching their engagement party on Snapchat.

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The biggest mystery to me so far are the people that work full time, AND go to school, and best believe, I’d let you know once I figure out how they do it!