You're Not Actually 'Adulting' If You Aren't Already Doing These 8 Things

If you're a millennial, the word “adulting” is probably in your vocabulary (whether you like it or not).

From actually saving some of your money to refraining from drinking all weekend, every weekend, adulting should be on your agenda by the time you reach your mid to late twenties.

If you want to finally get in the driver's seat of your life and start adulting right, here are some things you'd better be doing!

1. Living on a budget.

It's important for your finances, wellbeing and life as a whole to watch where and how you spend your money.

Take a good look at your student loan debt, your spending habits, your grocery bill and your saving goals to help you create some kind of budget to guide yourself with.

You can still go to the bar, have a restaurant meal and buy new underwear too, just figure out a budget that will help you work it all out.

This is a great time in history to budget too since technology literally offers an app for that.

2. Actually being ready for pets.

Getting your first puppy and kitten may seem like a big accomplishment when trying to do the whole adulting thing.

I mean, it's the next step up from one of those old school Tamagotchis and will help prepare you for parenthood. However, actually being prepared for a pet is the way to really adult properly.

Honestly, I almost fed my friend's dog chocolate once just because I had no idea that it may kill him. Did you know that? Maybe you did, but there are tons of things to educate yourself on before getting a pet.

Get on the internet, do some research and you can easily find out what you need to know about nutrition, grooming and vet visits.

3. Building a savings account that you never touch.

This is so important. Seriously. I've been working and making money since I was twelve. And, while I was good at saving in order to buy something or go on a trip, it didn't occur to me that I should have started a bank account of savings that I never touched.

Even if I put twenty dollars a week in the account, starting from my babysitting days, I would have racked up some SERIOUS cash. Even if you start when you are 27, it's better late than never.

4. Visiting family.

Life gets busy and sitting around watching TV with your mom can feel like a huge waste of time. But, family is important! You probably know that already but it will feel great to actually put the feelings into action.

Pick up the phone and call your grandparents, offer to take them out for coffee once or twice a month. Write letters to family members who are far away or offer to come help your mom clean her house every once in a while.

It honestly won't take up too much of your time and you will feel great about it.

5. Learning new skills.

Just because you finished college or learned a trade doesn't mean that you should stop learning.

Acquiring new skills will set you up to make money or get a better job in the future.

The more skills you have, the more resources you can fall back on if you get fired, your company goes out of business or if you just get tired of your career. Read books, participate in workshops or take free online courses in your spare time.

6. Taking your health seriously.

It's not cool anymore to brag about how many beers you can drink and how little of sleep you can run off of.

Taking care of your health is one of the biggest forms of adulting that you can do. Ok, so you don't have to be a health nut, but you should know by now that eating fast food is gross, not knowing how to cook a meal is kind of pathetic and never exercising is a fast track to getting old.

You should even have a yearly schedule for when you get physicals, see specialists and get your teeth cleaned. It's your body, take care of it.

7. Trying to understand your finances.

The world of finances can be really confusing. Especially since schools teach you how to measure a rhombus instead of teaching you how to file taxes, budget your monthly expenses and get into investing.

No one is going to teach you about the financial world, so, you better go out there and do it yourself.

Read books and hire professionals to guide you and stay up to date by reading financial magazines and websites.

8. Setting goals and going after them.

Setting goals and actually taking action towards them is how you are going to get what you want out of life. Don't just sit around and complain, waste time and talk about what you wish you could do.

If you want to adult, start making plans for your own life and following through with them.