I am beginning to hate the word ‘adulting’ more with each passing day. If you have kept up with any form of social media in the recent months, you’ve probably seen the term at some point. If you haven’t, you’re one of the lucky few. I’ll admit, I’m probably guilty of using the word a time or two, but never in a serious way. Adulting is a popular term among millennials that basically represents simple tasks done in everyday life, such as going to work or paying a bill. In other words, it’s like taking responsibility and being a normal human being in the real world. I’ve never understood why so many 20-somethings use this term to describe their lives so much, and I probably never will. While I agree that these tasks are important and must be done, they are certainly not anything worthy of praise.
It isn’t even the word itself that bothers me so much, it’s how young people use it out of context. And they’re completely serious about it. The funny thing about adulting is, the people that are actually doing the hard work and being mature adults aren’t the ones using this term to describe their everyday life. It’s all of the high school and college students that are proud of the fact that they cooked a meal or did a load of laundry by themselves. If we really wanted to talk about situations that involve adulting, we could talk about all of the parents working full-time jobs while raising multiple kids, or the doctors, nurses, teachers and so many others that worked hard through college while trying to pay off student loans and now go to work every day with a smile on their face, even on the days they don’t want to. Chances are, you’ll probably never hear one of these people use the word adulting. Why? Because it basically has no significance thanks to today’s society.
Young adults have this misconception that if they do something independently, they deserve praise or attention for it. Why has this become such a popular trend? Since when is making an appointment on your own or going grocery shopping so hard? It’s not, but this generation seems to think that simple tasks like this are challenges that they deserve credit for when they are done.
Contrary to popular belief, paying for your own gas, clothes and food isn’t adulting, it’s just a normal part of growing up. Cleaning your house or car isn’t adulting, it’s just being a clean person. Doing everyday household chores isn’t adulting, it’s just having normal responsibilities.
All of this basically comes down to laziness. If young adults think that they deserve some kind of credit for working a part time job or waking up before 7 am, what happens when it’s time for them to buy a house, get a real job or start a family? How are you supposed to be ready for these major responsibilities when you are so caught up in the fact that you completed a chore list or wrote a check for something? It’s time for this generation to quit patting themselves on the back for doing something simple and start taking responsibility without complaining. It’s time to quit #adulting and actually grow up.
