Tales Of A Twentysomething Nothing
Posted by meredith on 06-18-2009
The quarterlife crisis isn’t an invention of the recession. But the downturn and the growing ranks of unemployed twentysomethings has given the phenomenon a much higher profile as of late. As such, there’s been a lot of interest in how affected Millennials are coping, and resources popping up intended to help them cope.
In that camp is self-described “Life Coach” and “Gen Y Expert” Christine Hassler who wrote a three part series that recently ran over on Huffington Post. I caught the final installment yesterday, “Tips for Twentysomething Transformation,” and was intrigued. So, I went back to read Hassler’s first two posts (here is part one and part two) and while some of her insights resonated, especially the emphasis on lifting the pressure off figuring it all out now and focusing on the present, when she mentioned the transformational weekend workshop she runs for twentysomething women struggling with the transition period, I paused. Here’s description from the workshop’s website
“In this intimate, profound and experiential workshop, you will dive into your feminine being, come out of your cocoon of doubt, anxiety, unworthiness, fear and confusion, and emerge as a much stronger and more beautiful woman for it!”
What concerned me with Hassler and her sales pitch wasn’t just the belabored butterfly metaphor or the hefty pricetag on the workshop ($695!), but the idea that this type of crisis, these growing pains, whatever you want to call the awkward stage of life that comes after college, but before your career, could be alleviated in a single weekend. That these symptoms of “doubt” “anxiety” “fear” and “confusion” can somehow be cured by a quick fix, when in reality they are a natural, albeit uncomfortable, part of growing up.
Yes, there are degrees of discomfort and some may be debilitating enough to seek professional help, but I think for most twentysomethings, the quarterlife crisis is pretty much on par with a second bout of puberty. Only this time with the self-awareness (a trait most twentysomethings I know have in abundance) to remind themselves how they got through that rough patch the first time around: by talking to your friends and family, recognizing that this is a temporary situation, partially beyond your control (only this time that variable is the economy vs. hormones), and occasionally indulging in a Judy Blume novel or two. Swap out the YA for an old angsty classic like “Reality Bites,” and I think most of us will be fine finding our flight path on our own.
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Categorized under: Collegians
June 19th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I think the quarterlife crisis is directly the result of adults lying to children about reality. Perhaps we should simply stop doing that, and it would clear much of it up.