Thread by @startupdaemon

24 ADULT SKILLS

If you can't take care of yourself on a basic level, how do you claim any agency or independence?

Young men and women, if your parents never taught you this, you should learn it now.

It’s called adulthood – it's the opposite of helplessness and cluelessness.

1. Preparing inexpensive meals from RAW ingredients.

This is the single most important life skill that will keep you fit, healthy and out of bankruptcy. Anyone can learn to cook at a basic level.

ANYONE.

Drop the lazy habit of buying meals that make you fat and depressed.

2. Doing basic repairs around the home.

You should be able to handle a hammer and nails, screwdriver and screws, a paintbrush etc.

No-one expects you to become a master mason, but you shouldn’t let your living space deteriorate over nothing.

3. Shopping without impulse buying.

Make a list of things you’re going to buy BEFOREHAND, then shop all you want.

If you have a ‘shopping problem’ and you absolutely want something, put it on the list for next time. The cool-off period will tell you whether you really want it.

4. Budgeting for recurring expenses before all else.

Rent, utilities, the dumbphone bill you should cut – they come first. Then make the required payments on any debt you have.

Don’t spend on anything other than food unless the vital expenses are paid first.

5. NEVER borrowing to consume.

This is an actual skill, yes, and a habit. If you don’t have the cash to pay for it in full, and it’s not a business expense, don’t borrow to buy it. Save the money first, then indulge yourself all you want.

If you couldn’t pay off your credit card last month, you should put it in a drawer and keep it there until your balance is back at zero.

6. Keep mould out of your toilet and bathroom.

It’s pathetic that I have to say this. But I know people in their 30s and 40s who have mouldy toilets and bathtubs and don’t even realize it. I know because I can usually smell it from the front door

Mould causes headaches, depression and even cancer. If your bathroom has a funny smell, you’re poisoning yourself – literally.

Replace your stinky shower curtain, clean under the ream of your toilet bowl and scrub your bathtub regularly.

7. Repairing your clothes and shoes.

The thread and needle are magical items. Learn how to repair not just your clothes, but shoes, towels, curtains, tablecloths – anything that can be sewn.

It feels good when you’re done and you look a lot less like you’re homeless.

8. Keeping your clothes neat and clean.

Don’t walk around in torn, stained or stinky clothes. Unless you’re a garbage collector, miner or construction worker, you have no excuses.

Pay attention to yourself for a change.

You don’t have money, you don’t have time, you don’t have a laundry unit – none of those are legitimate reasons to be scruffy and filthy.

You will never have money if you keep looking like a bum. Have some self-respect. Clean clothes are a must.

9. Doing laundry without damaging your clothes.

Get some basic understanding of fabrics and colours, and wash your clothes carefully. You don’t need to literally boil everything to make it clean.

Your clothes have labels that tell you how to clean them. Read them labels!

10. Removing stains from clothes and other fabrics.

Don't thow a tantrum when you stain your clothes. Baking soda, salt and lemon juice are your friends. It takes a basic search online to find out what works for what stains and on what fabrics.

Treat stains immediately.

11. Navigating with a still map.

GPS and automated map directions literally make you dumber. Spatial awareness is essential intelligence.

Learn how to find your way with a map without directions from your corporate overlords at Crapple and Groogle.

12. Finding the way without a map.

What will you ever do without your dumbphone? Learn to orient yourself by landmarks, the map in your head, the sun and the stars.

If you can’t find your way, ask someone for directions! That’s a skill in its own right and you should learn it.

I NEVER use my phone to get directions.

I look up any new place before leaving home and go there using my own knowledge of the city. I get around faster than people staring at their dumbphones trying to get basic directions for everything.

Their helplessness is palpable.

13. Moving without a car.

Many people are deluded that cars give them freedom, but cars are another dependency. When cars break down, car addicts are helpless.

Learn to use public transportation and your own feet to go places.

Bicycles work, too, just don’t get killed.

14. Doing basic car maintenance.

You should know how to change a tyre, check the oil, fill up with water, set wipers and maintain tyre pressure.

I don’t own a car, yet I end up helping car addicts change tyres and oils. Don't be clueless.

If you don’t do daily maintainenance on your car, it quickly deteriorates and starts looking like a dumpster.

In a cold dark night on the road, you don’t want to be at the mercy of your dumbphone or whomever stops to help.

15. Driving a stick-shift car.

Learn to drive even if you never have to, including stick transmission. You never know when it could save your life or turn out to be a vital skill if you lose your job and run out of money.

16. Treating basic conidtions like the flu and stomach ache.

Find out what works for you and what OTC remedies are best for you with minimum expense and toxicity. The best approach is not to get sick in the first place – by eating right, fasting and exercising regularly.

17. Making decisions without asking permission from authority.

This is another shame-level entry on the list, but necessary. If you’re always looking for permission or advice from someone, you simply aren’t an adult.

Make action your default impulse before anything else.

18. Going without food.

A common excuse for eating junk food, especially among so-called adults, is that they don’t have time to make or make actual food.

This no longer applies if you’re able to go to bed and show up for work the next day on an empty stomach.

No time to get real food? Then go hungry.

If you really need to eat that much, you will make the time to get something decent. Because that’s the adult thing to do.

19. Prioritizing.

Children tend to be curious and exploring, which creates a very real danger of being distracted for life because of modern technology.

The ability to focus on what matters is becoming scarcer and more important than ever.

Get in the habit of making a list of priorities every day. It will help you avoid feeling chaotic and develop a discipline for priorities.

20. Keeping out of dangerous situations.

Learn to figure out if you are getting yourself in a dangerous situation or dealing with sketchy characters.

Keep yourself out of dodge instead of escalating an argument or engaging with people who are looking for a fight.

Whenever I see a lot of police cars and fire engines flocking somewhere, I go in another direction.

21. Keeping your home clean.

Learn to use a vacuum, broom and mop to get your place squeaky-clean in no time. Even if you can afford to pay a cleaning service.

Otherwise what do you do if you have a dinner party and there’s a disaster in your dining-room? Be self-reliant.

22. Knowing the difference between a want and a need.

If you can’t do without it – if you literally can’t function or die, – then you need it. Otherwise, it’s just something you want or something you thimk you want out of boredom.

Don't be infantile.

23. Messaging people you don’t know to get things done.

The storied cold call is a vital life skill for anything from job hunting to finding a new home. It can literally save your life, if you need to ask for help.

To many people, it never occurs to ask.

You should be able to approach strangers without doubt or fear.

Embrace rejection and enjoy meeting new people.

24. Having polite manners.

Most people nowadays are clueless about basic etiquette. Table manners appear to be some massive luxury few possess. You can easily learn those things with a basic web search.

Stand out from the crowd.

Rudeness and incivility may be entertaining at first, but they always take you to the bottom of the social pyramid.

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