Thursday, September 27, Rio Hondo hosted a workshop in hopes that students would know about adulting. This workshop worked to bridge the gap between student life and adulthood for students, some of whom find themselves unprepared for the outside world and all the challenges they’ll face as they enter this new stage of life.

What is Adulting?

         Webster’s Dictionary describes adulting as an informal term to describe the behavior seen as responsible and grown-up. People see this behavior as being able to meet the mundane demands of independent and professional living, which include paying bills, taxes, and running errands. The term, though having several words similar before, increased in popularity in 2015 and 2016 as the age of the standards of adults began to dwindle.

           Of course, this word stemmed from the rise of the millennial generation, which was undergoing significant life changes at the time. It’s important to note that this word has not yet lost its hold on generations who have not been prepared for the challenges they were to face in the years after they graduated High School.

The Seminar Begins

            In hopes of helping students feel more confident about themselves when entering adult life, RHC’s Therapist, Dr. Angelica Diaz, and Counselor, Guadalupe Villagas hosted this workshop called Adulting 101. Diaz believes that being an adult would be considered problematic, and this event can help give students what they need to be mindful and responsible when it comes to the real world. Villagas, the co-host of this workshop, gave her expertise and shared experience.

          The first thing this workshop did for its students was take a few moments just to close their eyes and relax in the quiet room. This was one of the many self-soothing techniques that Diaz had stated were good to do in times of stress or overwhelming experiences to keep calm.

         As for this experience, some students were a bit confused with the activity, one of whom expressed that “it was… something.” 

So, what made the lecture so important in the first place?

The Seminar’s Importance

        Diaz’s lecture was mainly about what we, as students or people, will go through every day. She called it an area of wellness, from emotional to societal. These eight areas we focus on make who we are who we are.

      “Of course, all of us like to focus more on some areas more than others,” Diaz said, “it is the reason as to why we would falter on the areas that aren’t as focused on.”

      Adulting 101 had a good mark on people who had joined the workshop to learn about stress in the adult world. For instance, even the people who had gone there who weren’t even students. “It really makes you think,” Vanessa Cerano, A student success coach who had attended the workshop, said, “as an adult it’s important to be mindful of the practices you can learn.”