Learning to Adult: 7 Essential Life Skills

Self-reliance is often the proof that people provide when proving that they truly are “adulting”. In order to be fully self-reliant, one must have extensive knowledge of essential life skills that can prove handy in many scenarios.

From basic things such as jump-starting a car to abstract skills such as flirting, all adults are expected to know how to do certain things. Here is a list of seven essential life skills you need to know as you learn to adult.

1. Manage Your Anxiety

Many different situations can trigger your anxiety, and each person is different with how anxiety affects them. Whether you’re a cool cat or a nervous wreck, anxiety affects every person. Knowing how to manage your anxiety is a critical skill to have.

There are many small, relaxing natural remedies that you can use to manage your anxiety. From working out to drinking tea, every person finds success in different remedies. Keep looking until you find what calms you down and puts you in a more stable psyche.

Managing your anxiety can help you in various ways. For one thing, it can help keep your mental health in check. It can also improve your interpersonal relationships as well as the confidence you have in yourself.

2. Write a Resume

Before applying to any new job, it is important to have your resume in impeccable form. Knowing how to write the perfect resume may set you apart from other qualified candidates, and may change your life immensely.

Resume writing is an essential life skill that you should practice very often. It never hurts to have an updated resume, even if you are perfectly happy with your job. Situations can change instantly, and having an up-to-date resume is important at all times of your professional career.

3. Negotiating

There are many situations in life where negotiating effectively may help you significantly. In fact, many of the basic conversations we have every day involve negotiating, from choosing where we want to eat with our spouse to negotiating with ourselves whether to eat that last cupcake.

Successful negotiating can be a powerful ability in the professional setting. Not only is negotiating a key aspect in many jobs, it can actually help you to a higher starting salary or a better position at work. Being able to stand your ground and negotiating well can also impact the way people see you in a positive way.

4. Budgeting

One of the biggest differences everyone feels as an adult has be paying for your own expenses. No matter what your income level, budgeting can be a crucial part of your adult life.

Budgeting successfully will ensure that you always have money for the things you need and for what is important to you. It will also allow you to find places for savings, which are important to have in case of an emergency. Budgeting well from the beginning of your adult life can set you up for a successful retirement as well.

While there are many basic expenses most adults have, everyone’s budget is different. It is important to truly learn how to budget and customize your budget to your own preferences. Staying on top of your budget is a crucial part of adulting.

5. Having Good Table Manners

This may seem like a no-brainer, but we all know people that ignore the basics of good table manners. These people stand out in a very negative way, and our opinion on them can change simply because of how they act at dinner.

Having good table manners is a basic part of being an adult. Important dinners are very common as you get older, from dinners with your future in-laws to dinners with your professional superiors.

While having good table manners may not make a huge difference, not having them does. There are many things that we may do at the dinner table that we don’t even realize are rude. Be sure to always be cognizant of how you are acting in order to show off your best self at any meal.

6. Shopping for Groceries

While the supermarket used to be a fun maze of food when we were younger, as adults it is a weekly destination. Shopping for groceries successfully is a major key to being an adult.

In order to shop for groceries, be sure to take into account what you truly need that week, by keeping some kind of mental inventory of your refrigerator. While it may be tempting to buy sweet, fattening foods, those are often overpriced and unnecessary.

Try to focus the majority of your grocery list on healthy foods that will help you diversify your diet and not bankrupt you. A helpful tip to grocery shopping is to never do it on an empty stomach, as a hungry mind is usually quicker to pull the trigger on more food than a satisfied one.

7. Cooking

While we may always miss mom’s spaghetti, cooking is an essential life skill to develop once we move out. Not only is it essential to a conservative budget, as ordering out is far more expensive, cooking can also be very fun.

There are many places online to find inspiration for new recipes of foods you may enjoy. Many adults also have recipes that run in the family, so don’t be afraid to ask your friends and family for cooking advice.

While it may take a while to truly understand the right portions of sauces and spices for each meal, creating a new, delicious meal for yourself is a rewarding experience. Plus, cooking is a great stress reliever and can be a major positive in your life.

Need Even More Essential Life Skills?

While these seven skills are a great place to start off when trying to “adult”, the most important thing to remember is that there’s always more to learn. From mastering these skills even further to learning new skills, you can never “adult” too hard.

For more life advice and educational opportunities, don’t hesitate to visit our website.