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Well, I'm 30 and it became pretty apparent after getting out on my own about a decade ago that American society revolves entirely around two things: working and buying.
Work, buy, work, buy, work, buy, work, buy.... Throw in a few random layoffs/firings and maybe a health issue or two. Rinse and repeat until you are old and have one foot in the grave, or you become disabled or die before retirement.
Extreme frugality is the way to go. The earlier you can retire, the better. True freedom is not having to work if you so desire.
Absolutely wrong. True freedom is loving your job so that it doesn't feel at all like work. But without productivity, your life is a waste of time. And being "extremely frugal" is a horrible mindset. A mindset of limits and constriction and denial. So you condemn yourself to misery when you are young and strong so you can plan your own early obsolescence when you are 45. Bad philosophy, bad plan, bad life. Not a life worth living in my book.
Honestly, I think it's pretty immature to have been running around being an idiot in college or in your early 20s and then get sad over the fact that you can't do that anymore as an adult. That's life. Grow up.
I'm 22 and wouldn't say my early 20s have been that great so far. I feel pretty stagnant but that's all my fault.
I feel very jaded, negative, worried about everything and ornery all the time. I've also become more impatient and irritable in the past few years as well.
I agree completely. Living in small town middle America is a huge part of my issue but there isn't anything I can do about it right now. If you don't get married and start having kids at 22, it can feel like life is over. I am planning on eventually moving but unfortunately I won't be able to do it for five more years because of poor decisions I made. It sucks because by the time I can move, the years will be starting to take their toll. The only way I can move before April 2020 though is if I can come up with $15,000 which isn't happening.
I live in a small town as well. And the dating sucks. My grandmother thinks this town has been my problem, and had a moved sooner, I would have met a special someone by now. That's only her opinion. But who knows. it could be true.
I am in my mid 20s. And people in my age group, for the most part are married, and/ or having kids already. An old friend of mine is technically engaged.
I decided to focus on other things so I could get my life together, and move out of this town. But Lord knows, just working on the 1st step of that plan has taken a year, and still not close to finishing with it.
So no. The 20s is a struggle. My 30s, hopefully will be much more free.
The baby-boomers raised a couple generations of self-medicators and listless confused people. It is actually 'normal' for their offspring to suffer identity crises. Sad but true.
Yes because we know that everything is the Boomers' fault, and none of these problems existed to any degree before then. There were no self-medicators prior to the Boomers' adolescence and adulthood (what do you think the cocktail party culture of the 40's and 50's was? Self-medication normalized), no identity crises, no confused people. Everyone was happy and well-adjusted before the 60's.
Im nearly 50 and I can tell you, each decade has been a huge improvement on the one before.
I could not agree more. My 20s were not fun. My 30s, life was much better, 40's, finally start accepting who I am, who I'm not, who I'll never be; 50's, learning to accept life is not all about me but doing my best to have fun and stay connected. Every decade of my life has been better then the former, despite losses, great change and challenges. I try to always find something new to challenge me now but if I fail, so what. Once you are living your life for you, it gets better, despite responsibilities, committments and the like. Could not even fathom what that meant in my 20s.
Absolutely wrong. True freedom is loving your job so that it doesn't feel at all like work. But without productivity, your life is a waste of time. And being "extremely frugal" is a horrible mindset. A mindset of limits and constriction and denial. So you condemn yourself to misery when you are young and strong so you can plan your own early obsolescence when you are 45. Bad philosophy, bad plan, bad life. Not a life worth living in my book.
45 seems a bit young to become decrepit and obsolete. That is still a relatively young age.
My 20th birthday ushered in a new era in my life, one in which I came into my own.
I kissed my teens goodbye and started a new relationship with the woman I can proudly call my wife today. I also switched majors -- from accounting (the field my dad pushed me into) to marketing, which I felt would make better use of my talents.
I'm convinced the main reason I hold that year in such high regard is because of my now-wife. It was also an exciting time because of college and the rise of social media (e.g., MySpace, Facebook, YouTube), but I wouldn't be reminiscing as fondly if it hadn't been for the fact that I ended my dryspell in the love department.
In my teens, even though I was uber-romantic and craved a serious commitment, I couldn't seem to find the right girl. I had short-lived flings with three who all seemed immature and unsure as to what they wanted. To be fair, I was shy, and I lacked self-confidence, so that might have contributed to my slump.
My hooking up with my wife was serendipitous. I first met her in the 6th grade. Though we were good friends that year, we never saw or spoke to each other again until prom night seven or so years later, when we greeted each other in the elevator. (Standing next to me was one of the three girls I alluded to earlier.)
Two years later, she and I reconnected on MySpace. We hung out and entered into a relationship only a few weeks after we started talking again. Thus, the origins of our relationship had a Cinderella story feel to it. We also ended up losing our virginity to each other, which made it all even more special. (She had never been in a serious, long-term relationship before we got together either.)
It felt so good to FINALLY be in a long-term relationship -- something that seemed to elude me in my teens. Nothing I had ever experienced before -- or have experienced since -- has been nearly as consequential. Yes, getting married and buying a home together later on were huge steps, but the year 2005 set the wheels in motion.
I agree with others who say our early 20s were special because we were more carefree -- we enjoyed being an adult without all the responsibilities of adulthood. College, for its part, infused variety into our lives. There's nothing like that first taste of real freedom.
In many ways, though, I prefer being in my early 30s. Now we have the means to travel as we please -- something that was not feasible 13 years ago. We also have privacy in our condo, which we can leave as messy as we like without being screamed at.
While sometimes I miss the excitement of being in a new relationship, I wouldn't give up what we have for anything. The key to a happier life is living in the moment, enjoying new experiences, and planning for the future.
I am now 29 about to be 30 and looking back over my life, I have very fond, nostalgic memories of my early 20s. The years roughly from age 20 through 25 were the best of my life. Though those years were not totally carefree and I did have my ups and downs, there was a magic to those days that I find impossible to recreate today. By this, I mean there were things I did in my early 20s that were so exciting then but today I don't get near the joy from them. Things like getting hammered at the club until last call and then stuffing myself at Waffle House and feeling fine the next morning. Those days were a blast! Today, I dread going to nightclubs and when I leave, all I have is a ring in my ear and the expectation of a hangover the next day.
At 29, I am expected by society to be mature and project an image that I have everything together and I am nowhere close to where a man my age should be. At 23, I could be myself, have fun, and just live life. Everything felt different then than it does today. The world had a shine to it that is gone at 29.
Also, when I was 26 going on 27 I fell into a severe depression that I still have not recovered from.
Are our early 20s the best years of our lives? I get depressed thinking that the best life has to offer is already behind me and its all downhill from here. Is this just me or can anybody else relate?
Oh, no way were 20's the best for me, more like the worst...
There really is something wonderful about reaching maturity and beyond.
Guess you'll have to wait and see...
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