That moment when Adulthood gets real.
For most of us mentally adulthood was not a sudden thing, we just found ourselves THERE. I thought about this off and on over the years and came to a conclusion, for me it was kind of experiment in freedom that evolved until I had a oh shit moment. Basically I can remember testing the waters of adulthood around the age of 16 1/2 when I got my first “Real Job” as a dishwasher in a Hilton hotel. Before getting that job of mine, I just tried daily to stay occupied so my mom had not reason to give me something to do. Then one day I found myself with something to do constantly, and it was after getting my first full responsibility job. So here it was for me, in steps I can remember.
- At 16 had a girlfriend who attended Purdue University ( yes I was in high school, my game was tight…lol)
- Got a Job working as a dishwasher, at Detroit Metro Airport Hilton. (worked my ass off too)
- Opened a checking account
- Began to save Money.
- Had to buy my own cloths now, as my mother explained it. “You work, get your own clothes”.
- Got my first loan. The loan was through a local credit union. I impressed the loan lady because I saved $800.00 as a deposit, but had no money for car insurance thanks Dad for the insurance down payment)
- Bought my first Car
- Broke up with girlfriend, had freedom now, silly me (She was smart too, she’s an engineer now)
- Got 15 more girlfriends over time
- Purchased a gold chain on credit to help credit rating it (gold chains, and car audio were the hot thing).
- Opened a Hudson’s (now Marshall field) Charge Card to establish credit.( They use to call then charge cards,LOL)
- Enrolled in school after graduating High School and had to dig deep to pay for classes. (had to sit out for 6 months because I got behind on tuition. Felt like a loser)
- Graduated
- Got a job as a field technician.
- Bought a more expensive vehicle (custom Chevy S10 truck, girlfriend lost her mind, called me a moron), debt, see where this is going.
- Moved out from my parents, partially (My mom saved me on the groceries)
- Got Married
- Debt
- Children
- Debt
- Debt
- Divorce
- Fast forward at this point – no debt, now frugalish
So, I’m not sure how your life played out, but I remember one day about 6-8 months after I graduated High school while arriving home at 4am and thinking “Shit, I HAVE to go to work in a few hours” because I had to pay for:
- Rent
- Car insurance
- Various small credit cards
- School
- Car Payment
- Food
- Gas
- and the list goes on.
In that moment at the age of 19, it hit me that I was an adult, responsible for my own being. I think it was in the fall, because the weather was turning cold and a few of my friends were still in highschool. The only thing I could think was there is NO turning back forever.
Here is the point I would like to make, we basically stumble into being adults. There is no course, seminar or step by step manual, and no one has perfected the process. One thing I do know, out of all the years I and maybe you too, were in school none of it really prepares us formally to be adults . Only by going the path of experience can we obtain the lessons to be an adult, but it sure would have been nice to have a manual, or lesson plan. Our parents give us bits a pieces of information you need to navigate, but it seems so foreign, because and they seem so OLD, and unwise to us when you are a young adults. So listen to them now, because nothing is new in the world, except electronics, and bad television.
We all say, “If I only knew then what I knew now”. Well what you know now can help you in the future, all that is required are a few downs times and recoveries back up. Don’t sweat the small stuff, because the majority is small stuff.
Here is one thing I have for everyone, myself included. As long as you stay alive, free and healthy “90% of what happened in the past will not matter when you get to the future.
So take the thing you know now to live best in THE BILLIONAIRE LIFESTYLE.
Now go live The Billionaire Lifestyle
Emmitt Muckles
photo credit: The Case of the Mysterious Suitcase via photopin (license)
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