32 little life skills everyone needs to be a grown-up

The old advice used to be that everyone needed to know how to balance their chequebook, but thanks to digital banking and credit cards, check registers have gone the way of the woolly mammoth. But that doesn’t mean that budgeting, perhaps the most important household skill there is, should too. In lieu of a physical accounting, make sure you know how to track your income and expenses. You can create your own spreadsheet at home or use an app, but whatever you do, make sure you do it.

For such a short word, it’s amazing how many of us have a hard time saying it. But learning how to graciously but firmly say “no” – without padding it with excuses or white lies – is a critical life skill. If you’re one of those people who automatically says “yes” when someone asks you to do something and feels guilty saying “no,” try saying “I need to think about it” instead. That will give you time to think through your schedule and decide if it’s something you can really do without the pressure of having the person’s pleading eyes boring into you. And remember: Every time you say “yes” to one thing (like working late), you’re also saying “no” to everything else (like the gym, dinner with your family, and a reasonable bedtime).

Here are some communication fixes that will save your relationship.

Eggs are a cheap source of quality protein, and when you boil them you add portable to their list of wonderful qualities. But boiling the perfect egg can be tricky – too short and you end up with gross gooey whites, too long and you have a bouncy ball that crumbles when you try to bite into it. Listen up adults: It doesn’t have to be hard.

Here are 10 ‘facts’ about eggs that are an absolute yolk.

You did something wrong? Congratulations, you’re human! Unfortunately we often treat mistakes as personal failures, which makes hearing about them upsetting (to put it mildly), and when others try to offer criticism it can unleash your inner Hulk. But if you can teach yourself to see mistakes as learning opportunities instead, it makes them – and the inevitable criticism that comes with them – so much easier to handle.

Check out these common etiquette mistakes you need to stop making by the time you’re 30.

Clothing quality has been markedly decreasing over the years, and unfortunately, so have sewing skills. This means that not only is a popped button, a hanging hem, or a hole in a sweater inevitable (thank you fast fashion!) but you’re stuck buying a new item or relying on safety pins in weird places instead of doing what should be a simple fix.

Here are some genius methods to decide which of your clothes to toss or keep.

Want to party but not wake up with a hangover? Stuff yourself with cake but not gain weight? Take off every Friday but still have a job on Monday? Speed but never get a ticket? Well, we’re sorry to be the ones to break this to you, but this is not the way the world works. (Usually.) We all know this on an intellectual level, and yet we rage against it on an emotional level, living as if we don’t understand the immutable law of consequences. So here you go: When you make a choice to do something, you are also choosing the consequence. It’s a package deal.

The NRMA and roadside service are a godsend for sure, but it takes only one time of having your car tyre go flat on a mountain road two hours away from the nearest town to make you realise the importance of knowing how to change a tyre. You won’t need to use this skill very often (we hope!) but it’s well worth the time spent learning it for the handful of times you do. After all, mountain roads are fun to drive!

Here are 13 car problems you’ll regret ignoring.

Communicating with another person while looking them in the eye may be humankind’s oldest skill, but in an age of FaceTime, texting and email we’re rapidly losing the talent for robust conversation. Yet nothing shows your interest and commitment more than simply talking with someone in person. Once the conversation is flowing, remember the golden ratio: 51 percent listening, 49 percent talking.

See these tips for how to make friends as an adult.

Babies are tiny, fragile humans that literally have holes in their skulls, so it makes sense that a lot of people are nervous to be left alone with them. But newborns not as breakable as they first seem, and learning a few basics, including changing a nappy, can go a long way toward making you look and feel like a competent caregiver. Even if you don’t have kids, knowing how to change a nappy can still come in handy in case of a babysitting emergency. Thankfully modern nappies make this a pretty painless process.

While you’re at it, learn these seven seriously dangerous parenting moves that even careful parents make.

Paying your bills is Adulting 101, but it’s not as simple as handing over the money. You need to read through the bill and make sure it’s correct, check your bank balance for sufficient funds, ensure you’re paying it in a timely fashion, use the correct method, and make sure they got it and applied it correctly to your account.

These 15 money mistakes could be costing you thousands.