Parents and teachers mean well when they attempt to instruct us on the ways of the world.
But it doesn’t mean they’ll teach us everything we need to know, does it? Most of what they teach us is the basics: bathroom etiquette, tying our shoes, reading, writing and the like.
However, what about the more irregular stuff? The things you wish you knew about before entering adulthood?
Reddit user, Wijting, asked:
“What do you think you are doing wrong, but are too scared to ask somebody?”
Ride The Lunch Train Straight To Hell
“I have no idea if my lunch break is an hour or 30 minutes.”
“Where my office is located in my building, my boss and co-workers can’t see me leave for lunch. When I started, I just began taking hour lunches like I did at my last job.”
“Recently I heard a co-worker mention taking her 30 minute lunch.”
“I’ve been taking hour long lunches for 6 years and it’s way past the point of asking….” ~ spydervenom
Feel The Fury
“How to handle anger? I’m too embarrassed to ask” ~ Ok-Plastic-62
“Theres an excersise that i use sometimes when i get too angry:”
“First take deep, slow breaths. This evens out your breathing and calms you down (sometimes youll unconsiously start brething at a quicker pace when angry).”
“Make sure your in a comfortable position, one that you can be in for a minite of two, and imagine that your body is slowly being filled up with ‘liquid sunshine’ from the bottom up, like an hourglass.”
“Sounds odd, but give it a try! It has helped me out more than once.” ~ TroospooK
You Just Pucker Up
“Kissing. I’ve had no complaints but it’s not really something your parents taught you to do properly (unless you’re into that)” ~ BenignFrustration
“You and your SO will learn from one another what they like/you like and what they don’t like/you don’t like.” ~ Gianca16
It’s The Hardest, Simplest Decision You Can Make
“My finances – no idea how to properly manage my money.” ~ FinnbarMcBride
“Figure out exactly how much money you bring in during an average month.”
“Take your last x months of expenses (I did 3 but if you had a full year of normal expenses that’d be best)and break it down into categories of what you spent money on [i.e. loans, food, gas, fun stuff]”
“If you have more expenses than income take a honest look at your expenses and make some cuts, id mostly focus on stuff like gaming, going out, drinking.”
“Try to put as much money as you can into your 401k, usually 10-15% of your monthly income is advised (but also doesn’t have to happen if that would put you into the res)”
“If you have cc debt pay that off first, then car loans then long term loans like student loans and mortgages” ~ pspspsprjrjejdjdjdj
Tongue-Tied Argument
“I feel like I’m really articulate when I’m going about my day especially over text, but as soon as I get into a verbal disagreement it’s like my f’king brain shuts off and I forget how to think. Like a deer in the headlights.”
“I don’t remember it always being this way but it’s like I’ve got this huge amount of social anxiety in those situations now and I struggle to accurately express myself.” ~ The_Splenda_Man
“That’s totally normal. You don’t have the same amount of time to think about your response in person.”
“I think that it is really more important to listen to what the person is saying rather than trying to come up with a response. Remember, it is always valid to say ‘I need more time to think about this’.” ~ kitskill
Are They Still Breathing? Probably A Good Start.
“Babysitting. I babysat a few times when I was 13 or 14 and I wasn’t sure if I was just supposed to check in on the kid or play with them or just like, make sure they don’t die.”
“I’m really good at kid sitting but babysitting (or for me watching a kid under 7 years old) is just hard.” ~ Teabeany
“If it’s new parents they’ll inundate you with instructions.”
“If it’s not new parents they’ll be happy as long as the kids are alive and the house hasn’t burnt down.” ~ IAmJohnny5ive
I Thought I Was Being Friendly?
“Flirting. Let’s face it.”
“I don’t even know what the heck that is, how it works and what the difference between talking and flirting is.”
“Funny enough apparently that leads to me being constantly flirty without wanting to be. At least I often get told that I flirt with almost every single person I met.” ~ OverlyShyEnby
We’re All Envious Of You
“Showering. I have very very long thick hair and I just kind of blast shampoo and conditioner at it.”
“People ask me what I do to keep my hair so nice and I have no idea what to say. People seem to have such complex hair rituals and I’m here just aping it up.” ~ SkylordZoey
Who’s Supposed To Teach You This? Honestly?
“I’m a girl. Not sure if I’m supposed to shave the thin blonde hairs in my thighs or not.”
“Sometimes they look darker, but sometimes they look blonde.”
“I shave the rest of my legs ( below the knee), but I’m in my 30s. Feels like I should know this already….” ~ busycleaning
“Out of all the women I’ve slept with, I genuinely can’t remember if there were hair on their thighs.”
“It never even occurred to me until I saw your comment, and I can’t imagine other people would care unless they were particularly squeamish about that specific thing.”
“But would that still matter to them in the heat of the moment? Idk. I don’t think so” ~ DandyBubbles
Not As Complicated As You Think
“Life.”
“Like what am I supposed to be doing? I have about 80 years total.”
“So far, I’ve learned stuff, got married, and got a good job. Am I just grinding out the rest of my years?” ~ OPmeansopeningposter
“Help others, improve the world.”
“You’ve listed a bunch of stuff you’ve gotten out of life. Now it’s time to think about what you can give.” ~ orange_avalanche
When in doubt?
Just ask.
Someone.
Anyone.
Or JFGI.
Better to know than not know, right?