A wise person once said, “everyone’s just winging it”.
No adult has it all figured out, just as no young adult should be expected to.
So, whilst we’d love to tell every young person exactly how to become a thriving adult, we’re afraid we can’t. What we can teach you, however, are some key ‘adulting’ foundations for finding your feet.
Money
Money doesn’t buy happiness.
What money does buy, however, is security, peace of mind and financial freedom. As a young adult, it’s important to form healthy money habits and beliefs. It’s easy to celebrate every pay day with a shopping spree, and spend money you simply don’t have on things you simply don’t need because it feels good.
The ability to navigate money and stick to a budget is a major life skill. Yet according to HILDA, less than half of our population are adequately financially educated.
Then there’s taxes, superannuation and investments. Did you know, the ATO estimates there to be $17.5 billion worth of lost and unclaimed super in Australia? This is directly due to a lack of general education on the topic. The more you know, the less likely you are to lose money, pay unnecessary fees and be taken advantage of financially.
Communication
An estimated 75% of the population struggles with their fear of speaking in front of large groups. Public speaking is vital for school assessments, events, workplaces, networking – the list goes on!
Ever heard this? Your network is your net worth.
However scary, networking is one of the fundamental ‘adulting’ tools that will help you invaluably in your career and relationships. Your ability to sell your work, or yourself, can often define some great opportunities and foster useful connections in your industry. Devising an elevator pitch or having some interesting conversation starters on hand are both useful ways to get the ball rolling!
Job hunting
Finding a job can be a long and difficult process for the best of us.
To top it off, a BeHiring survey revealed employers spend an average of 5-7 seconds per resume, and one spelling or grammar mistake will likely land your resume straight in the bin. To be a successful applicant in a saturated job market, you must know your employer, present well and fit the criteria. This starts with a stellar resume and carries over to fantastic self-presentation and interview skills.
It’s also important that you can identify both your hard and soft skills. This ensures you’ll be applying for relevant jobs of real interest to you. Valuable soft skills in any workplace include communication, resilience, negotiation, decision making and initiative.
Know your worth in the workplace and accept nothing less.Sound scary? Come along to Little Dreamers’ official Victorian Youth Week event on Saturday 6 April, titled ‘Adulting’ For Young Carers.
You’ll attend workshops on all of the skills mentioned above and more, participate in a range of activities and games and receive awesome prizes for simply attending!
Register for free today.