20 Is The New 30

This year I am turning 27. Now, 20 plus years ago, that would have meant a different thing. I probably would be more established or at the very least more sure about where my life is heading. There is a reason people say 30 is the new 20, our generation is taking it’s time to figure things out, and I personally feel like it is for the best. 

Because of the competitive work place that is ever growing, jobs are harder to come by and many of my friends, present self included, are just getting started and finding our way. 

I was lucky when I finished high school; I knew exactly what I wanted to do and had a plan as to how to get there. So, unlike many others, I wasn’t lost or unsure, trying to figure out what to do next. But that does not mean that it has been any easier. After talking with a lot of my friends, I have noticed there is a common vibe going on, that of uncertainty. For some, the feeling of uncertainty comes from having been in the same job now for a few years and realizing that it is not challenging enough to keep doing it for the rest of their lives or that it is simply not leading them in the exact path they desire. Others are finally starting to figure things out, but almost a decade “late”, and feel like they are at square one all over again. 

For me, I am grateful to have a growing small business, an awesome business partner and a supportive boyfriend, but like many other startup business owners, I have to work a full-time job unrelated to my interests just to pay the bills and stay afloat. 

I know many people feeling the same way, albeit going through different circumstances; one close friend of mine, quit serving after 10 years in the restaurant business to get more stability in her life. Although happier at her new job, and more determined to figure out where and what to do next, she has had to give up the steady flow of disposable income, and that has made life a lot more challenging in other ways. Another worked her butt off while still living with her parents; she recently put a down payment on a home, and while she is not happy with her current job she cannot afford to leave it. Then there is my creative and talented friend, who has a career path in mind but the competitive markets and small Canadian industries make it hard to find paying work. And let’s not forget about all those world travellers and life-long students that have huge student loans or debt in some form, so although figured out, they still have huge strides to get to the finish line.

These are just a few examples, but what I really want to focus on is the importance that we all know we aren’t alone out there. 

As posted in the Toronto Star by Sarah Barmark in 2010, “the period between 18 and the late 20s (are) a new life stage called “emerging adulthood”. It would be characterized by five features, according to Clark University psychologist Jeffery Arnett: identity exploration, instability, feeling in-between, a sense of possibilities and self-focus.”  

These characteristics tell me that we are on our way and with the average life expectancy at 81 I think it is fair to say we have the time. I am ok feeling a little flustered, overworked, or unsatisfied when I know that the possibilities are out there if I want to work for them. 

I say to all of us out there, trying to figure out our shit, continue to believe in yourselves and we all have the potential to do some pretty amazing things.