We all know how tough growing up can be for teenagers. But are there specific things that teens today should know about the “real world”? Adults on Reddit sure think so. Here are 17 reality-checks they’d give to the younger generation about life as a grown up…
17. “You are responsible for everything you do.”
“You are responsible for everything you do, and you will be held accountable. Enjoy your youth til 16, because after that, the kid gloves come off.”
“There are no adults, only children who’ve gotten old enough to be responsible for things.”
16. “Having a goal and a plan in life doesn’t automatically mean it’s going to work out.”
“I think this is just perspective. The older I get the more I realize that it isn’t always clear what “failure” or “success” looks like. Life isn’t simply pass/fail or making a certain dollar amount.”
“This is a lesson so many need to understand. You can train to push a rock up a mountain for years and still have everything work against you. That’s sorta how it is.”
15. “If you don’t plan your own b-day parties you wont have b-day parties.”
“I’m in my mid 30s and if I don’t initiate, nothing ever happens. It really does get tiring.”
“Sometimes my “party” is only with one person I care a lot, eat good food, and that’s it.”
14. “If you f*** around too much you’ll eventually find out.”
“This really is something that a lot of teens need to learn, since high schools are so lenient with everything. In the real world, if you don’t do your work you get fired, not endless extensions. In the real world, if you get into a fight you go to jail, not home for a few days.”
“If you do something often enough & long enough, eventually you will get the punishment you were trying to avoid, or recieve the reward you were seeking.”
13. “Friendships take maintenance.”
“Maintaining one awesome friend is more worthwhile than the struggles of maintaining several okay ones.”
“Don’t treat your friends like dirt, then wonder why no one wants to spend time with you.”
“Gotta be a friend to have a friend!”
12. “Sometimes you’ll only have yourself to rely on.”
“But the reverse is also true. Sometimes you need to rely on others. I had to cut someone out of my life because they psychotically could not acknowledge that they have a huge group of people willing to help them.”
“But you need some sort of friendships too. Sometimes that friend does something small that just saves you.”
“No one is coming to rescue you.”
11. “Comparison is the thief of joy.”
“The only person you should be comparing yourself to is your past self.”
“All those pictures of your friends on social media, that’s how they want to be portrayed. Stop comparing your 100% self to the 1% they choose to show you.”
“Don’t get fooled into thinking the grass is always greener on the other side because it rarely is. Just focus on watering your own lawn and you’ll start to appreciate just how nice it is on your side of the fence.”
10. “Nobody really knows what they’re doing.”
“As kids we are supposed to assume that adults are perfect. As an adult I can confirm most are still figuring things out.”
“You don’t magically gain some great insight at 18, 21, 25, 30, 40, when you have kids, get married, etc. Everyone acts like they are the master of their universe, but it’s all an act. We are pretending to be an adult.”
9. “People lie.”
“Just because they’re an adult doesn’t mean they always tell the truth.”
“And a fair bit of the time, they don’t even know they’re lying, or they’ve lied so well to themselves it’s effectively the same thing.”
8. “You have to make an effort to have a social life.”
“If you don’t plan your own b-day parties you won’t have b-day parties. Friends planning something for you are super rare. It’s not like on TV.”
“Working to maintain a social life as an adult is a real good piece of advice. It truly becomes something you need to make an effort in. Some of your closest friends will inevitably go down their own paths in different ways that pull them away. Not intentionally but it just happens as you grow in career and family. If you want to keep that person as a friend for a long time it sometimes takes an extra effort and sacrifice in both sides to make it work.”
7. “You can make no mistakes and still lose. It’s not weakness. It’s life.”
“You can be the most delicious peach on a tree, but not everybody likes peaches.”
“I would add that sometimes your best is not enough and that is also life.”
“Yes, the amount of times I’ve “failed”, somehow life turns out better than before…It’s almost as if you were meant to “fail”, to continue the path you’re supposed to pursue.”
6. “Don’t worry about not having the respect of people you don’t respect.”
“I’d like to add: don’t take criticism from people you wouldn’t ask for advice.”
“That’s a great advice, especially for teenagers who are usually very anxious.”
“Worrying about the opinions of people who don’t give a s*** about your well-being is only going to hurt you in the long run.”
5. “You are the main character in your story but…not even an afterthought to 8 billion people.”
“Yeah, honestly, people are mostly focused on themselves in day to day life. Don’t stress about trying to do things to look good in front of others, they are mostly unaware anyway/forget.”
“Yep, only a handful of people really even care about you. It may seem depressing, but it’s actually empowering.”
4. “For better or for worse, confidence opens as many doors as competence.”
“Also, internships matter way more than grades.”
“I’d actually argue that it opens more doors. People who are attractive/charming/confident will do significantly better in life than people who are just good workers.”
“But there is also a very fine line between confidence and cockiness, tread carefully. Also confidence is rarely verbal.”
3. “Everything is expensive when you move out.”
“And nothing is free. You always pay in some way or another, both private and work life. Once I asked a consultant an easy yes or no question (since he was already on site and stood in front of me). He sent me an invoice for it.”
“Also, all that stuff that’s magically in your parent’s house isn’t in your house. When you desperately need a qtip at 3am, or one specific tool for that weird desk you got back in high school? You gotta buy it.”
2. “$1000 is a lot to owe but not a lot to have.”
“That $220,000 student loan feels pretty hefty when you put it like that.”
“Agreed. Don’t let your financial debt get out of control.”
“As someone who went into relatively minor credit card debt when they were young (~3k) it can be quite crippling at that stage in your life and even beyond.”
1. “Life never ‘settles down.’ If something is important to you, then you should get to it ASAP.”
“Don’t get complacent or pass up opportunities because you think more will come along. Before you know it you’ve lost ten years saying ‘I’ll do it next week.’”
“I spent a lot of my life thinking I was too young/inexperienced to do what I wanted. Now I think I’m too old/too entrenched in my current field to do what I’d truly like to do. It’s all excuses of course. Just f****** do it.
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