15 Going On 30: Are Today’s Teens Rushing Into Adulthood? Why They Shouldn’t…

1.  Having An Epic Adventure

There’s something about traveling in your twenties that makes life’s possibilities seem endless. Not to say you can’t explore different area codes if you’re married or have children, but I know twenty-somethings who left on what started on as a vacation and ended up changing their address. When you begin to plant roots in a location when you’re starting a family, it becomes that much more difficult to just up and leave on a random whim.  And if you’re building a family on budget, travel is one of those things that starts to find its way further and further down on your list of priorities.  Every young woman deserves a Hawaiian sunset, a Parisian café or even a view of the New York City skyline to give her the satisfaction that she can navigate the globe without anyone’s help.

2.  A Night You Can’t Believe You Lived to Tell About

We all should have one story that starts with, “I’ll never forget that time…” It may be a drunken night where you left your $450 Prada platforms in the backseat of a the scummiest cab you’ve ever seen, the summer where you followed (insert popular musical performer’s name here) across the country on tour, or that weekend you were snowed in your dorm with only noodles, Pop Tarts and no electricity. There’s something about risky, crazy situations that test a woman’s strength and character that the cautiousness of our thirties doesn’t allow us to.  Those situations make your intuition that much sharper for a time in your life where being careless and impulsive no longer puts only you at risk.

3.  Living Alone in a Crappy Apartment

So maybe it’s not in a crappy apartment, but living alone actually allows you time to learn how to enjoy your own company.  When you become a wife and/or mother, “me time” is harder and harder to come by and you’ll find yourself missing nights with only a bubble bath, a glass of Chianti and your Jodeci Pandora channel to keep you company.  Living alone will test your resourcefulness and ability to maintain all of the responsibilities that come with running a household, even if the only person’s schedule you have to keep track of for now is your own.

4.  A Share of Jerks and Gentlemen in Your Dating Past

I believe you increase your chances of finding the right man when you can clearly define what you want out of a relationship through both healthy and unhealthy relationships. While for some it’s ideal, most of us will not fulfill the fairytale fantasy of marrying our first love. When I look back at mine, I really thank God for saving me from anything less than my worth, even though at the time I couldn’t picture life after said first love.  The break-ups and make-ups of your youth also force you to do some self-evaluation to prepare yourself to be a better partner for the one you eventually want to spend the rest of your life with.  Some of my rockiest relationships helped me recognize that at my worst I can be careless, crude, and insensitive, qualities I wouldn’t have been able to work on if I wasn’t made aware of them.