Right now it seems like the overarching theme of this "chapter" of my life is planning. I'm shifting from the mentality of "what's happening right now" to "what's to come in the future". It seems at this point in time that my life has evolved from a 100% carefree everyday party to about 70% carefree party 30% responsibility. (this statistic directly correlates to the games vs. useful or professional apps I have on my iPad). When I first got out of college, I think I was still in college mode and the feeling of irresponsibility went right along with it. I had a fun internship 4 days a week, I basically lived at home for free, didn't pay for any bills and just hung out with my friends everyday partying hard in one location or another. Now I'm not saying that I don't still hang out with my friends partying (by no means less hard) in one location or another, but over time I some how have managed to convince myself that I wanted more "responsibility". Looking back, I wonder why I thought that that was such a good idea...
WARNING: This blog promises to be full of stock photos.
For me (at least for me right now) responsibility relates directly to money and lesser so to time. Although I don't claim to be any sort of expert on managing either (nor will I ever), I am learning a lot about both every once in a while. For instance, did you know about the 50/20/30 rule?* This is one really helpful bit of information I learned recently in the new finance group I just joined. Just SAYING that I joined a finance group makes me feel like I'm at least 45... Also, for seemingly the first time in my life, I am having to prioritize my time. I thought life moved so fast in college and that I was soOoOo busy all the time, but looking back I realize that I had nothing but time-most of which was spent sleeping or partying. Now, everything seems to be moving at super sonic speeds and I am just barely staying in the race. Whether it's keeping track of work appointment or event schedules or even finding time to just hang out with my friends, it is getting harder and harder to fit everything in to the 24 hours a day that we're given. Now, before I can make any plans, even just to get a drink with a friend, I automatically say, "That sounds great, but I need to check my schedule first". As there is a growing number of things that we have to do, the amount of time available for the things we want to do seems to be ever shrinking.
I know that sounds like the most depressing thought you've ever heard but it's just a fact of life and it's really not so bad. When you have to plan and schedule and prioritize your life, you start to realize what and who are the most important in your life and you invest more into those things and people. You're able to really focus on what you want out of life and you're starting to figure out how to get there. eventually. For now though, I'll do fine to just remember to enjoy the little free time I have, which is most often still spent doing things that would register on any good maturity level at about a 18-20 (years old).
*50% of your income should go toward living expenses (rent, food, gas, utilities, etc.) while 20% of it should go toward your financial responsibilities ( credit card bills, insurance, savings, etc.) and the remaining 30% goes towards your lifestyle choice (entertainment, activities, vacations, shopping, etc.)
