10 Things that Make Adulting Pain Free

Photo by Daoud Abismail on Unsplash

As I am in my mid 20’s I have learned that everyone’s experience of their 20’s is delightfully diverse. I have friends that live with their parents and others who are becoming parents themselves. Some are married, single, or dating. Some are in corporate jobs, others retail, and some do freelance work.

As children going through a traditional school system we all are generally in the same stage of life until we are 18. But the 20s are where we start to see the real differences. Regardless of relationship status, housing situation, or job, these are the things that will make being a “responsible” adult easier and a lot less painful.

Document Box

You are going to need a lot of documents throughout your life and career, and nothing is more horrifying than thinking, “Where on earth is my social security card?”

New job? Getting married? Expired passport? Getting insurance? You are going to need some documents that you can actually find and use at a moments notice. Go to the store and pick up a clear bin that can fit multiple folder/binders inside of it. Now pile up all of your important things:

• Passport
• Birth Certificate
• Social Security Card
• Marriage Certificate
• Car Title & Insurance Cards
• Health Records & Insurance Documents
• College Transcript & Diploma (if not framed and hung up somewhere safe)
• Tax Documents: W2/W9 etc.
• Work Contract & Deposited Checks

Sort these documents into categories that work for you. An easy way is create one with all of your identity documents, another for insurance, one for school, and one for work. It is essential to know where all of your sensitive information is located and to protect yourself from identity theft. It will also save you so much time and energy.

A Clean Email & Mailbox

My mama always taught me to sort my mail right away so that it doesn’t pile up and you don’t miss a bill. Now I have not always been great at this, but let me tell you how relieving it is to see a completely clean email with no unread messages or unsent drafts. You can use the folders function to organize work by topic or client and archive important emails to make searching and sorting information much easier.

This also ensures that an important email or letter does not go unread by being lost in the noise of 100 others. It is also a great practice to timely respond to someone’s email especially if it is work related. People will see you as more responsible and trust worthy by simply keeping a clear line of communication.

Updated Resume & Portfolio

Started a new job? Update your resume. In school and looking to enter the job force sometime in the future? Update your resume.

In a great moment of learning I was rejected from a really cool design job. However, I really appreciated that the company sent me a personal email informing me I did not get the job and some ways that might help me in the future. They told me that my resume was very academic looking and that since I was looking to enter the creative field, my resume should reflect that as well. They basically gave me the permission and encouragement that I could make it more visually engaging. Not every career field has this as a possibility or is appropriate, but it taught me how to rethink the first impression my resume can make.

Make a portfolio. Having a personal portfolio of your work, especially in the creative field, is going to be a God-send. There are many applications that won’t let you proceed without a digital portfolio. Use Wordpress, Wix, Squarespace, Weebly, whatever, and start building out a portfolio. You can start with a free version and the more serious you get or larger budget you have you can purchase your own domain. In college I wish I would have done this long before the spring of senior year where I was drowning in work while also applying to jobs.

Spend some time with it and make it reflect YOU. It should showcase your work and have your personality. This is the digital version of your work and you — it should engage people.

A Great Coat

Buy yourself one really great coat. At an interview, especially if you live somewhere cold, your coat is going to be the first thing they see on you, not the outfit you carefully selected. It would be unfortunate for their first impression of you to be a dirty jean jacket or beat up ski coat.

My personal favorite is my wool burgundy red coat. The color stands out but not aggressively, and the cut of it allows me to wear either a dress/skirt or pants and a sweater underneath. This coat also functions as something I can wear out to dinner or to a nicer event without feeling like the exterior does not reflect the interior.

Steamer

This one actually comes from my husband. When we were dating in college, he bought a $60 dollar steamer off of Amazon. I thought he was crazy at the time, but man that thing is worth its weight in gold. I borrowed it all the time, including the house of girls I lived with at the time. I used it before interviews and presentations. We all used it to steam our graduation gowns. Now in our apartment we use it on materials that can’t be ironed such as our velvet curtains. In only 5 minutes time, you will never show up looking wrinkled and unprofessional.

5 Sworn by Recipes

Cooking can be such a drag sometimes. However, it is a necessity and really the first step towards living a healthy lifestyle. I have learned to love cooking these past few years, but finding 5 healthy, quick and easy recipes that you actually enjoy will be a game changer.

1. It will show your mom that you are not a barbarian and are doing well.
2. It will impress your potential dates or even your friends and coworkers that you know your way around a kitchen.
3. If you ever have to host something or bring a dish to a potluck it is a much nicer gesture to have a home cooked meal than to show up with a grocery store veggie plate or box of cookies.
4. Using fresh ingredients, vegetables, and less preservatives will overall benefit your health and mood than that millionth bowl of pasta.

Instant Pot

On that note…get yourself an Instant Pot. I SWEAR by this thing, and no I am not sponsored to say this, I just love it that much. In 40 minutes flat you you can make an entire stew, soup, or risotto. By simply throwing in the ingredients, locking the lid, and setting the time, you can have healthy and convenient meals. I look for recipe inspiration from all sorts of recipe blogs and then save them into a recipe folder in my bookmarks for reference. I no longer have an excuse for not having enough time to cook a nutritious meal, and on especially lazy weekday nights this has made my life so much easier.

An Active Book List

When is the last time you actually sat down and read a paper book instead of watching the movie or scrolling online? This one is coming from my inner English Major, but all of the people I look up to are avid readers and make reading a priority in their life.

Reading increases your vocabulary, comprehension, empathy, and causes you to engage with complex topics broken down in great detail. Reading has brought to life topics, places, and problems in the world that I never thought I would spend the time engaging with or understanding. Also how much more fun and impressive is it to discuss what book you are reading than to say you binged TikTok for 3 hours and have nothing to show for it?

Keep a list of the books you want to read, others have recommended, and you think could be useful or engaging. Then when you are looking for your next read or are staring blankly at the shelves of a book store you have something to reference easily. Also on a cognitive level, I get so much satisfaction crossing books off of my reading list and adding them to my “Have Read Book List.”

Planner

Although you are no longer a 13-year-old with your mother nagging you to write down your homework somewhere, this is something you should absolutely bring into your adulthood.

The planner doesn’t have to be a physical book, or some cute hand drawn bullet journal. Simply using your google calendar and note pad is a great way to keep your life and appointments organized.

For my job I work with various clients and juggle multiple projects at a time so it can feel like I am losing my mind when I don’t write down what each project requires or goals we are working towards. In addition, using a calendar has saved me from missing multiple zoom meetings because it sends out a reminder 30 minutes prior.

I personally enjoy using both a physical and digital planner. Being a visual and physical learner, the process of actually writing out my to do list allows me to retain more and be focused on what needs to be accomplished each day. This has allowed me to sort what needs to be done each week both personally and professionally without feeling like things are slipping through the cracks. If I don’t hold myself accountable, no one will.

Gym or Online Workout at Easy Access

When my husband and I moved to Detroit we spent a lot of time looking for a gym. If we picked some amazing AND affordable gym, but it was a 20 minute drive away, no matter how wonderful or cheap it is we would never find ourselves lacing up after work or on a weekend to go workout. Having to factor in a 40 minute commute was completely demotivating.

We found a gym that we could bike to if necessary, and was 5 minute drive, which has greatly increased our use of it as we can easily slip in a short workout. If we chose a further away gym the commute would 100% eat up those opportunities.

Since COVID-19, many of us can’t go to the gym, depending on where you live. What has helped us was finding a couple of YouTubers who have apartment friendly workouts that are fun and pack a punch in only 30 minutes. Now we have no excuse to find time to get some daily movement. We have loved doing MadFit workouts that have everything from targeted muscle groups to full body HIIT workouts. We also have found stretching and yoga routines that we enjoy that help with overall flexibility and lifelong mobility.

We don’t have access to a full range of weights or all the luxuries of a gym, but I fully believe that for physical and mental health, moving your body each day in an effort to care for yourself, and not in the pursuit of the perfect body or rock hard abs, is the perfect way to give yourself self-care and set yourself up for a lifetime of good habits and health. Even a simple walk or doing a yoga flow clears my mind and makes me feel so much better after a day of sitting at my computer.

It’s Really All About Organization

When it comes down to it — most of these tips center around organization. I can tell you personally that organization does not come naturally to me. This is something I have to fight myself for everyday. Most people in the creative industry can relate that our personality tends to lean more on the free expression side and it can be hard to tie us down. I have since learned that you don’t have to be unyielding, strict, or boring to be organized. It is something that will make you a better parter, friend, employee, boss, etc. You will get your work done well and on time. You will value and respect your own and others time and relationships.

Setting up systems in your life will in the long run give you more freedom for creativity and the things that bring you joy. Instead of scrambling last minute you will already have things in place. It will help eliminate a lot of the daily stress that comes with being unorganized. Most of all, remember that no one truly has their life all figured out whether they are 15 or 56. We just have to take it day by day and grow in the areas we individually need.