30 essential skills to know before you turn 30

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Wear properly fitting clothing

Your clothes should fit you properly. While this is something everyone should pay attention to, as an adult this should be an ingrained habit. Not only is this important on a professional level, but on a personal level as well. Properly fitting clothes just look good and it is all about dressing your age. You don’t want to look like your clothes are wearing you, nor do you want to look like they are painted on. Clothes are the story we tell the world and the last thing we want to say is slob.

Give directions to your own home

We know that most people have phones with built-in GPS, but if nothing else, you should be able to direct people to your home. There are still people in this world who don’t use GPS, such as older relatives who remember a time before cell phones even. You may not be able to get them from their homes to yours, but if you can direct them from the highway to you, or any other major point in your town or city, then you are golden. Know the landmarks and be able to get people from that point to your home. It’s not just good for them, it is also good for you.

Know how to introduce yourself

Of course, you know your own name and all of that, but being able to introduce yourself to new people is important. Not only do they not know you yet, but as we mentioned before, that first impression better be a good one. Using a proper greeting, saying your name, and being able to maintain eye contact, are all part of a proper introduction. When you know how to introduce yourself, whether on a personal or professional level, it inspires a sense of confidence in others that is good for many reasons.

Take advice

With friends, family or even co-workers, their advice can be incredibly meaningul and hopefully useful. As long as advice is coming from a good place (because sure, there’s bad advice just as much as good), you should take it in and see if there’s a way to utilize it. Being able to accept advice that friends and family offer up is important because it is a sign of being an adult who can think critically and rationally.

Be able to split a check

When you go out to dinner with friends, you should know how to split a check. There may be times when you cover for someone else, but being able to split the check will make things easier for you and your friends. While some restaurants will do this for you, there are others who won’t. And this means knowing how to do this on your own. Not only will this save you from a headache after a pleasant night out with friends, but it will also make it so that you never have to worry about having enough money to cover the bill.

With these 30 skills, we hope that when you hit the big 3-0 (or if you’re there already), you can show the world that you’re just as much of an adult as the next 30-something.

What advice would you give to someone about to be 30? Let us know in the comments!