Today we are back to the practical. Sometimes adulting isn’t fun. Sometimes it’s being your own inner parent and doing all the responsible stuff. It has occurred to me that a lot of emerging adults — myself definitely included — are still skill-building in that area.
I’m not talking crap; we’re all still learning, and I know a lot of established adults that don’t know how to do or don’t make a habit of all the things we’re going to talk about. Last disclaimer: This isn’t a comprehensive list. But it’s a big first step.
Documents/finances
- Make a budget and track your spending
- Save donation receipts (and any other relevant crap) for taxes. Here’s a list of what some of that crap might be:
- Donation receipts
- Pay stubs
- W-2, W-4, W-9, or any other government income forms that apply to you
- Receipts or record of other tax deductible items
- School-related financial info
- On that note, file your financial junk/important docs for when you need it, especially your birth certificate and social security card
- Build up an emergency fund (3-6 months of expenses)
- Research investing/retirement saving (and then start doing it as soon as you can which means take up any employer matches asap). Talk to people at various ages to get a solid range of advice
- Pay for/renew stuff slightly early whenever possible
Home Ec
- Cook some decent stuff. This means actual recipes, and quick fixes like making a simple roux (for which I honestly just make a paste of flour and a little water to thicken sauces, or cornstarch if you don’t want to use flour).
- Clean the bathroom and the kitchen WELL
- Make a bed properly
- Do your laundry properly
- Iron a shirt
- Sew a button
- Buy a good vacuum. Seriously
- You don’t have to buy name brand everything, but some of them are worth it — like stain cleaner (Tide, Oxi-Clean, Zout)
Fix-it
- Be able to check your oil and fill your tires on your own
- Take your car in for basic maintenance (oil change, tires rotated, etc.). There are almost always coupons for these services so be sure to look/ask
- Hang a picture straight
- Know where important house stuff is (fire extinguisher, electrical panel, fuse box, hot water heater, etc.)
- Build Ikea furniture — this is as much about following instructions as handyman skills
- Have a freaking tool box: hammer, small rubber mallet, Phillips and flathead screwdrivers, measuring tape, level. Buy them just before Father’s Day or Black Friday to get good deals on quality ones — this would be a cool thing to ask your dad/parent to help you with for bonding
Get *cultured*
- Learn to ask good questions about people, current events, etc.
- Learn tricks to remember people’s names in a conversation
- Media freakin’ literacy
- Read actual books
- Buy a decent bottle of wine (especially if it’s a gift)
- Do not tip your server less than 15% at a restaurant. Servers are often paid less because of tips, so they rely on them to make a living wage. Typing your bill total x 0.15 in your calculator will tell you the correct amount to tip
Misc.
- Know your/your family’s medical history
- Handle your healthcare
- Dentist every 6 months
- Optometrist every 2-3 years if you don’t need glasses, 1-2 times per year if you do
- Primary care doctor every 2-3 years if you’re healthy
- OB/GYN every 2-3 years
- Also, TELL YOUR DOCTORS THE TRUTH. They’re not gonna judge, and they can’t help you if they don’t have all the info
- Register to vote PLEASE
- Be an actually informed voter! This means reading your voter information guides (often on state, county, or city websites), researching propositions and candidates, looking at arguments from both sides, and looking at who is funding a campaign — especially the last one can often give a clue as to the intentions of a measure or candidate
- Update your vehicle insurance and actually put it in your car
- Figure out how different forms of insurance work. (At least kinda — I’ll have some more info on this one coming later.) Here are some of the most common types:
- Health
- Dental
- Vision
- Life
- Renter’s/homeowner’s
- Car or other vehicle
I realize several portions of this post were U.S.-centric, so I apologize if any of the info was less helpful to readers who don’t live in the States. If there are any of these that were vague, ones you’d like to hear more about, or ones that I missed, let me know in a comment below, on Twitter @ohgrowup, or Instagram @oh.grow.up! Thanks for reading, and good luck adulting!
oh grow up 