When did you first feel like a grown up

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the subjective experiences of participants regarding when they first felt like adults rather than children. It explores personal milestones, societal perceptions, and the ongoing nature of maturity, touching on themes of age, life experiences, and self-perception.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants reflect on specific life events, such as enrolling in classes or taking solo road trips, as moments that contributed to their sense of adulthood.
  • Others express uncertainty about ever feeling fully grown up, suggesting that maturity may be an ongoing process rather than a definitive state.
  • Several participants mention feeling a generational gap when interacting with younger individuals, which contributes to their perception of aging.
  • There are humorous and light-hearted remarks about the complexities of adulthood, including relationships and personal choices.
  • Some participants propose that the desire to experience life differently or to engage with new perspectives may signify maturity.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express a range of personal experiences and feelings about adulthood, with no clear consensus on when or if one truly feels like an adult. Multiple competing views remain regarding the nature of maturity and its recognition.

Contextual Notes

Some statements reflect personal anecdotes that may depend on individual definitions of adulthood, and there are unresolved questions about the relationship between age and maturity.

hbk4894
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just seen this question being asked on youtube so thought i would start it here , so when did you feel less like a kid and more like an adult?
 
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hbk4894 said:
just seen this question being asked on youtube so thought i would start it here , so when did you feel less like a kid and more like an adult?

I felt grown up for as long as I could remember. It was the adults around me whom I thought could use some growing up.
 
When I signed up for an evening math upgrading class. Out of the 30 or so students, there were 8 of us who were out of high school and working full time, aged 21 to 56. The rest were still in high school. I think witnessing their behavior was the first time I felt I had grown up.

Anyway, we all predicted that the majority of those youngsters would drop halfway through, and only those that paid out of their own pocket would remain. Sure enough, within a month and a half there were only the 8 of us left.
 
I'll let you know when it happens.
 
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Dad, when I grow up I want to be a physicist.
Son, you know you can't have it both ways.
 
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Still Waiting. Unless you count the feeling when you got behind the wheel to start your first solo long distance road trip.
 
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When you start to feel that you want to live a young life again (most old people will probably have to go through this stage)
and that's cool if they think they want to do it with a different life partner :DD, a sign of full maturity.
 
hbk4894 said:
just seen this question being asked on youtube so thought i would start it here , so when did you feel less like a kid and more like an adult?
I'll let you know when it happens.

[I'm 40.]
 
Silicon Waffle said:
When you start to feel that you want to live a young life again (most old people will probably have to go through this stage)
and that's cool if they think they want to do it with a different life partner :DD, a sign of full maturity.

Grrr, i am old and have been through several life partners and i still do not feel grown up:rolleyes::cool::biggrin:
 
  • #10
I agree with the following:

B0lPLT1CYAAaxj0.png


As to OP question. I don't think I can spot a point when it happened. And even if I agree with the above, I'm not so sure I've ever felt less of a kid.
 
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  • #11
Psinter said:
I agree with the following:

B0lPLT1CYAAaxj0.png


As to OP question. I don't think I can spot a point when it happened. And even if I agree with the above, I'm not so sure I've ever felt less of a kid.
This on one hand seems to be a correct approach to realizing how much one may have probably grown up but on the other he won't likely recognize it's an endless enlightenment process he is pursuing, and thus even at 90, e.g he may still think he isn't a true grown-up at all. How to lead my life is a matter of my own choice regardless of my age anyway.

wolram said:
Grrr, i am old and have been through several life partners and i still do not feel grown up:rolleyes::cool::biggrin:
Perhaps it's the moment you start to or want to experience something totally different, e.g you no longer have an urge to peek or look at people's body parts, your partners may be of the same sex instead of opposite sex as usual, something you think you'd better enjoy having or doing with those you weren't allowed to do with during your previous time/childhood etc.

Above are just my personal ideas :biggrin:
 
  • #12
I'm 27 in a few weeks. I feel neither grown up, or young but some weird hybrid.

What does make me feel old is the 18 year old freshers at the university (and the odd occasion when I meet a teenager). There's a startlingly obvious generation gap...
 
  • #13
Silicon Waffle said:
This on one hand seems to be a correct approach to realizing how much one may have probably grown up but on the other he won't likely recognize it's an endless enlightenment process he is pursuing, and thus even at 90, e.g he may still think he isn't a true grown-up at all. How to lead my life is a matter of my own choice regardless of my age anyway.Perhaps it's the moment you start to or want to experience something totally different, e.g you no longer have an urge to peek or look at people's body parts, your partners may be of the same sex instead of opposite sex as usual, something you think you'd better enjoy having or doing with those you weren't allowed to do with during your previous time/childhood etc.

Above are just my personal ideas :biggrin:

I have enjoyed my FEMALE partners, who said i was fed up looking:biggrin: any way being grown up has nothing to do with sex it is knowing how to do it:cool:
 
  • #14
I play a lot of competitive soccer and when my mens team plays against young teams I feel old lol. (About to turn 33)
 
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  • #15
Greg Bernhardt said:
I play a lot of competitive soccer and when my mens team plays against young teams I feel old lol. (About to turn 33)
Greg how can one reach such an exhaled position after only 33yrs:biggrin:
 

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