As a kid, I used to fantasize about being an adult. Staying up as late as I want, going out on dates and being able to drive myself anywhere I need to go? Sounds like a dream! But as I aged out of my teenage years, I realized that being a grown-up is much less glamorous than I expected. Suddenly, I had bills and rent to pay, food stopped magically appearing in the fridge, and all of my free time was swallowed up by this annoying thing called “work.”

If you know the struggles of “adulting” all too well, you’re not alone, pandas. Below, we’ve gathered some of the most relatable posts people have shared on X that encapsulate the bizarre experience of being an adult. Keep reading to also find a conversation with Lauren Keen Aumond of Adulting is Easy, and be sure to upvote the pics that make you feel seen!

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While “adulting” might sound like a made-up word that millennials throw around on the internet when tasked with annoying, mundane or challenging responsibilities, it is actually a word in the dictionary. According to Cambridge Dictionary, adulting can simply be defined as “actions and behaviors that are considered typical of adults, not children or young people.”

This might be the perpetual need to clean the kitchen, washing your car every week because it’s frustrating to see it covered in dirt, doing taxes, grocery shopping and actually eating food at home, and doing that endless pile of laundry. Adulting can be painful, strange, frustrating and exciting all at once. Accomplishing something like purchasing your first home? Amazing! Having to repair issues in the home that you weren’t at all prepared for? Not so much fun. 

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The idea of adulting came on the scene about a decade ago, and has been widely used by people who know they’re technically adults but don’t quite feel grown-up enough to claim the title. For example, you may be 25 years old but eat mostly microwaved meals and not know how to do your taxes without calling your parents. 

Doing something like scheduling your own dentist appointment can feel like adulting while the rest of your life feels like a strange mash-up of child and adult behaviors. And according to Jane Solomon, a lexicographer at Dictionary.com, many millennials might relate to the idea of adulting due to their “delayed development.”

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“This generation of millennials,” Solomon wrote in a 2016 article for American Speech, “they go through life stages that other generations have gone through much later in life, like starting families, owning homes. Maybe they won’t own homes at all.” Adults today are purchasing homes later than their parents, getting married and having children later, and many of us have very little disposable income. Therefore, we may feel less like taking on the full label of being an adult. It’s hard to feel like a grown-up when the example you saw as a child is much different from your current experience.

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To gain more insight on the topic of adulting, we reached out to Lauren Keen Aumond, content creator and host of the podcast Adulting is Easy. Lauren was kind enough to shine some light on adulting and share her personal definition of the word with Bored Panda: “completing mundane tasks unexpected of children.”

As far as the best part of adulting go, Lauren says she appreciates being in control of her finances, how she spends her days and what she chooses to eat!

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According to Lauren, being a grown-up doesn’t have to be incredibly hard. “At Adulting Is Easy, we believe you make adulting easier when you make money easier,” the expert shared. “If you don’t have to worry about how to pay your rent or mortgage or where your next meal is coming from, adulting can be easy.”

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As difficult as adulting may be, Lauren believes we actually live in a pretty great time. “This generation has cell phones, the internet, and so many more modern conveniences than generations past that adulting is easier now, in our opinion,” she explained. “We don’t have to churn our own butter, make our own bread, and start a fire to toast it. We buy the bread and butter from the store, then pop it in the toaster, for example.”

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And if you’re having a difficult time getting a handle on adulting, Lauren recommends tackling only one new hard thing at a time. “Don’t try to learn how to pay your bills, change a tire, sew on a button, cook, clean, and save for retirement all at once,” she noted. “Give yourself some grace. It takes time to learn how to be an adult.”

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“You can make adulting so much easier if you set your financial foundation as soon as possible, ideally in your 20s. But it’s not too late to start from wherever you are,” Lauren told Bored Panda.

If you’d like to hear more tips about how to manage adulting and get a hold of your finances as soon as possible, be sure to check out the Adulting is Easy podcast! 

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Are these posts making you feel like more of a grown-up, knowing that we’re all experiencing the same struggles, pandas? Keep upvoting the pics that hit home for you, and feel free to share your thoughts on the wild world of adulting in the comments below. Then, if you’re interested in checking out another Bored Panda article discussing what it’s like to be an adult, we recommend reading this one next!   

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Source: boredpanda.com