The 10 Things Everyone Worries About Most And How To Deal With Them

We Generation-Yers are a complicated bunch — filled with seeming inconsistencies and laden with contradictions. True. It is no loner a secret that Gen-Yers have interests that more often than not seem to contradict each other. We are the generation that wants it all — the bad and the good, and we want it all to be great.

We live in a society where the lines between good and bad have become blurred. What was once looked down upon, such as stupidity and vanity, is now being held to the greatest esteem on every television network broadcasting a reality TV show. So sure, we can come off a bit confused at times, but that’s only because we sometimes are a bit confused.

And so we worry. We worry about a lot of things in our lives, most of which are a result of not fully understanding our situations. Here are a few of the most prominent worries that our generation experiences in the grand decade before we hit 30 and how we can best deal with them, allowing ourselves to move past the roadblocks and towards prosperity:

1. How Am I Going To Pay The Bills This Month?

The economy has yet to bounce back to its former glory and our generation is paying the price for it. There are a large number of us that are able to live off our parents during our 20s — or early 20s — but most of us aren’t so privileged. Some of us have to carry our own weight and can’t turn to others for help. Luckily, there is always work available somewhere and money to be made somehow.

If you are having trouble paying your bills then you may need to suck up your pride for the time being and work a job that you feel like is beneath you. If you have bills to pay then you can either make money somehow or curl over and give up. Get a minimum wage job if nothing else is available and make the most of the time you have outside of work to working towards your dreams. Making progress in such regard is much easier when you can afford to pay rent and to eat every day.

2. Why Am I With This Person When I Know They Aren’t Right For Me?

I think it’s because several decades ago it was expected for people to get married in their 20s… but this is no longer the case. So why is it that we still decide to couple up so young? Most marriages fail when the two involved say their vows before the ripe age of 30. Even if you are not married or plan on getting married any time soon, why date someone that you know you will never fully love?

Dating someone just for the hell of it — which most people do, although they reason to themselves otherwise — is pointless. You are only hurting yourself and the other person. The only thing that you will learn from the entire affair is that dating someone that you know you won’t keep for the long run is silly. Stop worrying about them and break it off. Being with the wrong person will only hurt you — never help.

3. Will I Ever Find The Right Person For Me?

Some of us date whomever because we fear that we will never find the right person. It’s true: you may never find the right person…but that’s only if you decide not to. There are too many people in this world for us not to find several hundreds that we are compatible with. Sure, most of us will probably only run into a handful throughout our lifetimes at best — but if you are looking to settle down then there are options out there.

There is no point of worrying about who you’re going to spend the rest of your life with during your 20s because you’ll likely miss them when they do pop into your life. Learn to enjoy the life that you have and the ‘right’ person will find you.

4. What Do I Want To Do With My Life?

Why do you have to do one single thing for the rest of your life? Who ever said that you have to stick to one career, one industry or one passion? Yes, it does take about a decade to master anything worth mastering, but assuming that you will live for another five decades or so, you can easily master two or three skills or subjects and work within the respective fields for near a decade before moving on to the next. There is no ‘perfect’ or ideal ‘career.’ The perfect career for you is the perfect career for you right now.

When you change, your wants change. Over time, the needs of the world and the people within it will also change. Why not change what you do with your life along with it? This way, you can do your best to make sure that you are serving your purpose in life: to make yourself and others the happiest that you can. As the needs of people change, so should your goals.

5. How Can I Do What I Want To Do With My Life If I’m Stuck Doing This Instead?

Our current situations do not define us. Neither do our past or future alone. We are the sum of all simultaneously; what we experienced, who we are at the moment, and who we want to one day be.

You may find yourself working a job that you hate, in a relationship that is killing you bit by bit, and in a body that repulses you — but that can all change. We aren’t capable of changing our lives instantaneously; we have to work for it. Don’t spend so much time worrying about how you can get from point A to point B — just figure out what the first step has to be and take it. Then you can gather your thoughts and figure out where your second step must be.

How can you do what you want to do with your life if you are currently stuck doing something that you hate? Either stop what you are doing and do something else or, if you don’t have such a privilege, figure out a way to start doing what you want to do while still doing what you loathe doing. Eventually you will be able to make a full transition. Worrying about it will make it more difficult to overcome — worry less, do more.

6. Am I Spending Enough Time With My Family?

Probably not. What is enough really? One day they will all be gone and you will have wished that you spent more time with them. So, no; you’re not spending enough time with them. You never really are. Take advantage of their company while they are still around to share it.

7. To YOLO Or Not To YOLO?

That is the question — probably the most prominent question among Gen-Yers today. Somehow the expression “You Only Live Once” got turned into: “You Are Only Going To Live Until The End Of Tonight” a.k.a. YAOGTLUTEOT. How does thinking YOLO lead to doing hoards of Molly, downing bottles of vodka and snorting miles of coke?

If YOLO is your motto, then wouldn’t you be more careful with the risks that you take…you know, seeing as if you die you don’t get to restart? Yes, you only live once; so stop doing dumb, dangerous sh*t. You have one life to live and one chance to make the most out of it. If you keeping YOLOing the way you are now then your last words will be: WTF did I just do?

8. I Really Hope That We Just Didn’t Get Pregnant…

We’ve all experienced a pregnancy scare at least once. Even if we haven’t ever actually gotten a woman pregnant or been pregnant ourselves, when that monthly visitor is a few days late our hearts begin to race. There’s a solution: don’t have unprotected sex. Yes, raw feels oh so much better, but do you know what feels even better? Not being pregnant.

Not being an unexpected father. Not catching an STD. If you want to stop worrying then strap on a condom and/or pop the pill. Having a child should be a decision, not an accident.

9. Is Monogamy Really For Us?

Some of us feel strongly one way or the other, the rest of us aren’t so sure. A lot of factors go into whether or not we can pull off a successful relationship — much of which revolves around our sex lives. This may surprise you, but most people don’t cheat on their partners because they are no longer stimulated by the conversation they cheat because they are not being f*cked properly.

Sex plays a huge role in our lives and in the relationships that we form. Is monogamy natural or unnatural? I honestly do not know. This is a question worth pondering over. More importantly, we must all figure out not whether monogamy is universally correct, but if it is correct for us as individuals.

10. This World Is Such An Awful Place. How Can I Help Make It Better?

I believe that this is a worry that most generations before us did not hold to such high regard. It’s not their fault — we are more privileged than they were. Because most of us grew up having all of (or most of, anyway) our fundamental needs met, we have begun to look outwards. Generation-Y is the most philanthropic generation that the world has so far seen.

We set out not only to help ourselves, but also to help others. While this is a noble worry, focusing on it too much will slow us from taking actual action. Instead of thinking about how we can change the world, start helping however you can. Donate your time, food, clothing. Go feed the poor. Go dig some wells. Help administer vaccines. Do something because doing something is better than doing nothing. If you want to worry about how you can make the world better, then do so while you are already making the world better.