What was your life like at 23?

lulu_92

I'll tell you in July when I turn 23.

trailingspouse

On my 23rd birthday I was living in Devon, had been married 3 1/2 years, we owned a tiny 2-bed cottage, and I'd spent the previous 6 months on a ship going around the world (due to my husband's job).

On my 24th birthday I was living on Shetland, we owned a 3-bed converted croft house, and we had a small baby. Oh, I was trying to have a career as well!!

So, at various points when I was 23 I
- drove from Devon to Shetland
- got a job
- got pregnant
- rented, and then bought, a house on Shetland, at the same time trying to sell a house in Devon (that was fun...).
- and gave birth

aileth

I had been married for a month and owned my own home (thanks to my parents for gifting us the deposit!) for 7-8 months, and we had just adopted a kitten that my sister found thrown in a bin. A bit dull really!

engineer_amy

im thirty this year and have been taking stock of my life as well recently.


At 23, I had been in my current job nearly 5 years, working my way up the ladder, having given up on my engineering degree. im still there now, at the highest position I could be without buying into the company. Its been hard work, long days etc but I can honestly say I love my job. I had also just started studying for a degree in accountancy part time
I had got engaged at the Christmas when I was 23, and started immediately looking at houses in the January! Completed on the house on 18th of May (2 weeks before my 24th birthday)


It lasted a year living together before I got rid of the fianc!. I can recommend living together before getting married, it really opens your eyes.


Fast forward to today, I completed my degree in july - long hard slog working 50-60 hours per week, attending Uni 2 evenings and trying to fit in time to study didn't leave a huge amount of time for socialising!
No serious relationship happening at the moment, happy to keep it casual with a nice fella.


Cant say ive made any massive mistakes or have regrets, I consider myself quite lucky to have a supportive family around me, good friends, a great job and my own home.
some areas could do with a bit of improvement - the love life (eventually) and I need to lose weight.


Don't get too disheartened, you are still young and have time to do everything. Your priorities will change depending on the circumstances you find yourself in, and your ideal career you had in mind as a student may evolve into something else, better or worse that's up to you. make the most of any opportunities you get. Doing these difficult things you mention will give you experience, how to deal with stress etc,

fannyanna

I laughed (kindly) when you said you feel that you haven't accomplished anything.

At the age of 23 (which I think is still young in today's society) you have achieved the following:

• A degree
• Graduate job "of your dreams"
• A long term relationship
• The drive and commitment to take on things outside of your comfort zone

I think you're doing great!


Try not to compare yourself to other people too much. As humans we tend to only compare ourselves against the people that we've put on a pedestal.

bluenoseam

I was living at home with a full time job & a rather blinkered mindset at the time that said job was the single most important thing in the world at that time. I was in the middle of trying to persuade someone to do something who wouldn't listen to me (something that turned out to be a disasterous mistake on their part 2 years down the line!) & enabling their poor decisions. (Thankfully they did eventually wake up & their poor decisions were somewhat "corrected" but not before plenty of stress & frustration were caused) I genuinely thought I was one of those guys who was going to go through life without a scratch on me & wasn't paying any attention to the little things around me which I could've changed.

And know what, I probably wouldn't have changed a damn thing, I'm older & wiser now, but each & every mishap along the way has given me perspective. I might still be living at home but 7 years later I'm happier now than I was then and now I can relax more - probably going to live a few years longer off the back of that!

System

At the age of 23 I was divorced and remarried. I'd got two children from my first marriage and pregnant with the child from my second marriage.

SandC

I left home at 23 to live in a rented flat closer to town from my folks' semi rural area. I had an okay job and had just qualified to teach aerobics so the part time earnings from that helped in the transition from home to self sufficiency.

I had been rather obsessive over fitness and moving out on my own gave me a more healthy perspective and my social life picked up with being closer to town. I ditched the energy sapping boyfriend who had been great for 18 months but slowly bringing me down with selfishness and complacency for another 12 months after that. So I was enjoying myself basically!

I am 44 now and got an okay job still, better than the one I had when I was 23. I only rented that flat for a year and bought my house the next year. I've never settled down with anyone but whilst in many ways I know I've missed out on that closeness you have in long term relationships I know that none of the boyfriends I had were the right ones to do that with. Instead I have achieved a lot - you know when you are not a high earning career girl (as anyone 30s/40s unmarried without children is expected to be) you do learn far better coping skills and financial savviness. I know loads of people with far higher incomes than me who are nothing like as good with their money as I am.

I am proud of myself for living within my means (pretty much!).

And there is still time to meet that special someone if he happens to pop up somewhere unexpectedly.

Jue_xx

We got the keys to our first house on my 23rd birthday, so we spent my birthday moving our very few possessions in. We had no furniture, so spent the first 3 months sitting on garden chairs borrowed from my parents!

Our first meal in our new home was an oven ready pizza... which we burnt! :rotfl::rotfl: (my cooking has improved since then!)

lazer

At 23 I was still wondering about the same things career wise I am now


- Am I in the right career - was 2 years into it at that stage and wasn't really enjoying it, am over 10 years in it now and still not overly enjoying it - listen to your gut - if you think something isn't right change it before its too late.


Dating wise - was out kissing frogs, I had already found my prince at 19, but we were young and having fun, spent a lot of time with him, but we weren't together, am now married to him!


Housing - shared with 3 other girls, friends from uni, now all ex-friends.


I have now moved back to my home town, and have a good marriage, good friends (who really care about me, not like my shallow ex Uni friends), and am near my wonderful family.


All in all other than my work, and my husband being away with work a lot I am relatively happy with my life now, a new job I enjoy and a few children would make my really happy.