It's official: Gen Z are not delaying marriage til 30s anymore, young weddings are cool again

[Anonymous]

Someone on here said they would pay for the engagement ring! Wow. Just Wow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where are these UMC or MC men who are willing to marry in their early twenties? Who are these young pretty women supposed to marry??

Serious boys at elite colleges and Southern university fraternities. Smart boys consume most of the same social media influencing their female peers. There is pressure to hit these milestones and 'flex' them on social media. Engagement + wedding + buying a nice house together are all a huge 'flex' (achievement/status badge) to your peers. No high-achieving boys want to be some single Barstool dweeb obsessed with sports, using dating apps, and renting an apartment when they're 30.

So...Southern Frat bros. Got it. The young guys I work with (NYC finance) are not doing this. They're not worried about being a dweeb watching sports and using apps but they (mostly accurately) assume their dating prospects will rise with their success so they'd rather hold out for "better" late 20s or so then lock it down with someone they are dating at 20.

Nor do the guys working in tech or really ambitious guys anywhere (many from UMC backgrounds) have an interest in dealing with a spouse at a young age.

Others are literally describing rich, unambitious guys who will probably work in the family business. Hey, great for them...but they won't found the next OpenAI or Facebook.

Zuck met his wife in college

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where are these UMC or MC men who are willing to marry in their early twenties? Who are these young pretty women supposed to marry??

Serious boys at elite colleges and Southern university fraternities. Smart boys consume most of the same social media influencing their female peers. There is pressure to hit these milestones and 'flex' them on social media. Engagement + wedding + buying a nice house together are all a huge 'flex' (achievement/status badge) to your peers. No high-achieving boys want to be some single Barstool dweeb obsessed with sports, using dating apps, and renting an apartment when they're 30.

So...Southern Frat bros. Got it. The young guys I work with (NYC finance) are not doing this. They're not worried about being a dweeb watching sports and using apps but they (mostly accurately) assume their dating prospects will rise with their success so they'd rather hold out for "better" late 20s or so then lock it down with someone they are dating at 20.

Nor do the guys working in tech or really ambitious guys anywhere (many from UMC backgrounds) have an interest in dealing with a spouse at a young age.

Others are literally describing rich, unambitious guys who will probably work in the family business. Hey, great for them...but they won't found the next OpenAI or Facebook.

Zuck met his wife in college

And married at 28...even though he was a billionaire at 19. Don't you think there was a reason for that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where are these UMC or MC men who are willing to marry in their early twenties? Who are these young pretty women supposed to marry??

Serious boys at elite colleges and Southern university fraternities. Smart boys consume most of the same social media influencing their female peers. There is pressure to hit these milestones and 'flex' them on social media. Engagement + wedding + buying a nice house together are all a huge 'flex' (achievement/status badge) to your peers. No high-achieving boys want to be some single Barstool dweeb obsessed with sports, using dating apps, and renting an apartment when they're 30.

So...Southern Frat bros. Got it. The young guys I work with (NYC finance) are not doing this. They're not worried about being a dweeb watching sports and using apps but they (mostly accurately) assume their dating prospects will rise with their success so they'd rather hold out for "better" late 20s or so then lock it down with someone they are dating at 20.

Nor do the guys working in tech or really ambitious guys anywhere (many from UMC backgrounds) have an interest in dealing with a spouse at a young age.

Others are literally describing rich, unambitious guys who will probably work in the family business. Hey, great for them...but they won't found the next OpenAI or Facebook.

Zuck met his wife in college

Ironic considering the whole point of creating FB was wanting to get laid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about the other trend of not marrying at all?

I have coworkers with babies who are not married.

This is the actual trend. But it doesn't fit in with the current narrative being pushed

UMC/rich kids seem to be getting married younger. These kids likely have the support of the rich parents.

Poor and MC young adults may not have the money for a wedding or to buy a house. Our kids will have college, grad school, wedding and at least down payment from the parents. I would rather my kids marry relatively young in their twenties and have kids young.

I come from humble beginnings and traveled a ton in my twenties after I started working. My kids have been traveling internationally since they were young. My kids are still minors and been to Europe and Asia several times and the US/Caribbean countless times. It isn’t like they need to spend their twenties traveling and enjoying life. They have been doing this since being born.

Traveling with mama is not what people mean when they say "travel and see the world." That you would unironically write that tells me so much about you.

DP.

What does “travel and see the world” mean if not travel and see the world, which one can do with their friends, their parents, or even by themselves!

Do you mean getting drunk, high, and having sex with random strangers? That’s the only scenario in which you’re right and one would not get that experience traveling with mama…

No they mean exploring the world on your own without your parents paying for everything and holding your hand the entire time. Navigating a foreign transportation system or a language you don't speak on your own without well-traveled parents who can always step in to explain or guide.

I traveled a ton between birth and age 12 because my dad worked for a huge international company and we lived all over the world as he helped set up offices and factories for them. And then even after we settled in the US so I could have a "normal" high school experience we still traveled abroad a lot. So I was a "well-traveled" kid. But when I traveled in my 20s on my own I learned different things about myself. It was a totally different experience. Independence is a really powerful thing to explore and I do think I would have missed out on something if I'd married straight out of college even though obviously I wasn't lacking in opportunities to travel.

I never did the drinking and drugging and casual sex type of travel btw. I did meet lots of interesting people but I have always known to be cautious when traveling abroad.

You’re speaking from an upper middle class / wealthy bubble. The vast majority of American kids, teens, and young adults will NEVER “see the world”. For the average American family a trip to a single European country for a week is literally a once-in-lifetime event.

So you can continue to split hairs about whether seeing the world as a kid “counts” or not, but just understand that it’s irrelevant.

DP. Isn’t that the topic of this thread?

Anyway, the point was that most young adults would benefit from getting TF out of their hometown. “Seeing the world” doesn’t just mean visiting some tourist trap in Europe.

So wait, are you talking about upper middle class young people who have almost certainly been out of their hometown? Or are you talking about lower class young people who not only have likely not gotten out of their hometown, but will never do so regardless of their age at marriage?

Most young adults should become independent and ideally live somewhere else before settling down.

Why?

DP. If you go directly from being dependent on your parents to being committed to another person, you don’t get many opportunities to make decisions that are purely in your own self-interest, for better or for worse. Regardless of what age one gets married—if they get married—once they start checking the boxes of the traditional nuclear family, they might start to keenly feel the possibilities of how their life might turn out getting narrower and narrower. Which is normal and fine, but there’s that sweet spot right after college where there are just so many possibilities! What a wonderful thing and a great time to take chances, make mistakes with minimal consequences. Figure out what’s really important to
you. The more people you have hitched to you, the harder those risks are to take.

You can of course do that, but it is neither ideal nor necessary. It is merely one way to live your life.

I also can’t help but wonder how many folks on this thread are crowing about the supposed importance of living independently (particularly from their parents) while simultaneously receiving handouts. This area is rife with trust fund babies and people who had their entire undergraduate and graduate educations fully financed by mom and dad. Weddings paid for! Down payment assistance! College savings for the grandkids! And so on.

Some of us had to learn to be independent much earlier than many of the rich kids turned rich adults posting here…

You sound angry and like you have a chip on your shoulder. I'm sorry you didn't have successful parents, but there's nothing wrong with paying for your kid's education, engagement ring, wedding, honeymoon, and helping with a down payment on a first house. There is nothing to romanticize about starting adulthood in some student loan and rental apartment usury trap.

By extension...there's then nothing wrong with subsidizing every expense of your child for life. Of course that happens quite often with massive Trusts for kids.

I don't care one way or the other, but why stop at the things you list?

You're suggesting privileged kids are lazy layabouts, when they're anything but. They're wealthy Type A overachievers. They're going to selective colleges, getting great grades, and they're mindful about finding a spouse. Who you marry is the most important decision of your life. Not seriously looking for a spouse in your prime, when you're surrounded by 10,000-50,000 ambitious peers, is foolish. These kids have it all and they're quickly checking off status and milestone boxes. BA, check. Fiancé or fiancée, check. Grad school, check. Wedding, check. First house, check. Career in a premier city, check. Baby, check.

Ambition is evenly distributed across the population. So no, not every privileged kid will be a Type A OR an overachiever. Being born wealthy does not automatically confer ambition upon you. Especially when you never really had to fight for anything.

You seem very invested in this narrative in your head.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about the other trend of not marrying at all?

I have coworkers with babies who are not married.

This is the actual trend. But it doesn't fit in with the current narrative being pushed

UMC/rich kids seem to be getting married younger. These kids likely have the support of the rich parents.

Poor and MC young adults may not have the money for a wedding or to buy a house. Our kids will have college, grad school, wedding and at least down payment from the parents. I would rather my kids marry relatively young in their twenties and have kids young.

I come from humble beginnings and traveled a ton in my twenties after I started working. My kids have been traveling internationally since they were young. My kids are still minors and been to Europe and Asia several times and the US/Caribbean countless times. It isn’t like they need to spend their twenties traveling and enjoying life. They have been doing this since being born.

Traveling with mama is not what people mean when they say "travel and see the world." That you would unironically write that tells me so much about you.

DP.

What does “travel and see the world” mean if not travel and see the world, which one can do with their friends, their parents, or even by themselves!

Do you mean getting drunk, high, and having sex with random strangers? That’s the only scenario in which you’re right and one would not get that experience traveling with mama…

No they mean exploring the world on your own without your parents paying for everything and holding your hand the entire time. Navigating a foreign transportation system or a language you don't speak on your own without well-traveled parents who can always step in to explain or guide.

I traveled a ton between birth and age 12 because my dad worked for a huge international company and we lived all over the world as he helped set up offices and factories for them. And then even after we settled in the US so I could have a "normal" high school experience we still traveled abroad a lot. So I was a "well-traveled" kid. But when I traveled in my 20s on my own I learned different things about myself. It was a totally different experience. Independence is a really powerful thing to explore and I do think I would have missed out on something if I'd married straight out of college even though obviously I wasn't lacking in opportunities to travel.

I never did the drinking and drugging and casual sex type of travel btw. I did meet lots of interesting people but I have always known to be cautious when traveling abroad.

You’re speaking from an upper middle class / wealthy bubble. The vast majority of American kids, teens, and young adults will NEVER “see the world”. For the average American family a trip to a single European country for a week is literally a once-in-lifetime event.

So you can continue to split hairs about whether seeing the world as a kid “counts” or not, but just understand that it’s irrelevant.

DP. Isn’t that the topic of this thread?

Anyway, the point was that most young adults would benefit from getting TF out of their hometown. “Seeing the world” doesn’t just mean visiting some tourist trap in Europe.

So wait, are you talking about upper middle class young people who have almost certainly been out of their hometown? Or are you talking about lower class young people who not only have likely not gotten out of their hometown, but will never do so regardless of their age at marriage?

Most young adults should become independent and ideally live somewhere else before settling down.

Why?

DP. If you go directly from being dependent on your parents to being committed to another person, you don’t get many opportunities to make decisions that are purely in your own self-interest, for better or for worse. Regardless of what age one gets married—if they get married—once they start checking the boxes of the traditional nuclear family, they might start to keenly feel the possibilities of how their life might turn out getting narrower and narrower. Which is normal and fine, but there’s that sweet spot right after college where there are just so many possibilities! What a wonderful thing and a great time to take chances, make mistakes with minimal consequences. Figure out what’s really important to
you. The more people you have hitched to you, the harder those risks are to take.

You can of course do that, but it is neither ideal nor necessary. It is merely one way to live your life.

I also can’t help but wonder how many folks on this thread are crowing about the supposed importance of living independently (particularly from their parents) while simultaneously receiving handouts. This area is rife with trust fund babies and people who had their entire undergraduate and graduate educations fully financed by mom and dad. Weddings paid for! Down payment assistance! College savings for the grandkids! And so on.

Some of us had to learn to be independent much earlier than many of the rich kids turned rich adults posting here…

You sound angry and like you have a chip on your shoulder. I'm sorry you didn't have successful parents, but there's nothing wrong with paying for your kid's education, engagement ring, wedding, honeymoon, and helping with a down payment on a first house. There is nothing to romanticize about starting adulthood in some student loan and rental apartment usury trap.

By extension...there's then nothing wrong with subsidizing every expense of your child for life. Of course that happens quite often with massive Trusts for kids.

I don't care one way or the other, but why stop at the things you list?

You're suggesting privileged kids are lazy layabouts, when they're anything but. They're wealthy Type A overachievers. They're going to selective colleges, getting great grades, and they're mindful about finding a spouse. Who you marry is the most important decision of your life. Not seriously looking for a spouse in your prime, when you're surrounded by 10,000-50,000 ambitious peers, is foolish. These kids have it all and they're quickly checking off status and milestone boxes. BA, check. Fiancé or fiancée, check. Grad school, check. Wedding, check. First house, check. Career in a premier city, check. Baby, check.

Actually… you are quite lost in this particular conversation.

Rich adults who are rich because of their mommy and daddy’s handouts are being called out on their BS (accusing other people of somehow lacking independence simply because they choose to marry young, in this case).

[Anonymous]

I’m not buying it. The people who get married young typically don’t have as many options and aren’t missing out on much by getting married.

Most successful wealthy 20 somethings are going to grad school or building their career. They are traveling, having fun on the weekends and enjoying hobbies. Not…getting married.

To actually meet a wealthy woman from a place like Greenwich, CT who is 25 and married is incredibly unusual. I can think of Samantha Varvel and she’s Mormon.

If you’re wealthy and have an interesting life you don’t need to get married at a young age.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m not buying it. The people who get married young typically don’t have as many options and aren’t missing out on much by getting married.

Most successful wealthy 20 somethings are going to grad school or building their career. They are traveling, having fun on the weekends and enjoying hobbies. Not…getting married.

To actually meet a wealthy woman from a place like Greenwich, CT who is 25 and married is incredibly unusual. I can think of Samantha Varvel and she’s Mormon.

If you’re wealthy and have an interesting life you don’t need to get married at a young age.

The whole point of this entire thread is that the new trends IS that these kids are getting married younger.

I’m from nyx. I got married at 29 and was one of the earlier ones to get married and have a baby. I used to think it was a southern thing for people get married younger. Now it seems kids from all over are getting married younger and they are usually the rich good looking ones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about the other trend of not marrying at all?

I have coworkers with babies who are not married.

This is the actual trend. But it doesn't fit in with the current narrative being pushed

UMC/rich kids seem to be getting married younger. These kids likely have the support of the rich parents.

Poor and MC young adults may not have the money for a wedding or to buy a house. Our kids will have college, grad school, wedding and at least down payment from the parents. I would rather my kids marry relatively young in their twenties and have kids young.

I come from humble beginnings and traveled a ton in my twenties after I started working. My kids have been traveling internationally since they were young. My kids are still minors and been to Europe and Asia several times and the US/Caribbean countless times. It isn’t like they need to spend their twenties traveling and enjoying life. They have been doing this since being born.

Traveling with mama is not what people mean when they say "travel and see the world." That you would unironically write that tells me so much about you.

DP.

What does “travel and see the world” mean if not travel and see the world, which one can do with their friends, their parents, or even by themselves!

Do you mean getting drunk, high, and having sex with random strangers? That’s the only scenario in which you’re right and one would not get that experience traveling with mama…

No they mean exploring the world on your own without your parents paying for everything and holding your hand the entire time. Navigating a foreign transportation system or a language you don't speak on your own without well-traveled parents who can always step in to explain or guide.

I traveled a ton between birth and age 12 because my dad worked for a huge international company and we lived all over the world as he helped set up offices and factories for them. And then even after we settled in the US so I could have a "normal" high school experience we still traveled abroad a lot. So I was a "well-traveled" kid. But when I traveled in my 20s on my own I learned different things about myself. It was a totally different experience. Independence is a really powerful thing to explore and I do think I would have missed out on something if I'd married straight out of college even though obviously I wasn't lacking in opportunities to travel.

I never did the drinking and drugging and casual sex type of travel btw. I did meet lots of interesting people but I have always known to be cautious when traveling abroad.

You’re speaking from an upper middle class / wealthy bubble. The vast majority of American kids, teens, and young adults will NEVER “see the world”. For the average American family a trip to a single European country for a week is literally a once-in-lifetime event.

So you can continue to split hairs about whether seeing the world as a kid “counts” or not, but just understand that it’s irrelevant.

DP. Isn’t that the topic of this thread?

Anyway, the point was that most young adults would benefit from getting TF out of their hometown. “Seeing the world” doesn’t just mean visiting some tourist trap in Europe.

So wait, are you talking about upper middle class young people who have almost certainly been out of their hometown? Or are you talking about lower class young people who not only have likely not gotten out of their hometown, but will never do so regardless of their age at marriage?

Most young adults should become independent and ideally live somewhere else before settling down.

Why?

DP. If you go directly from being dependent on your parents to being committed to another person, you don’t get many opportunities to make decisions that are purely in your own self-interest, for better or for worse. Regardless of what age one gets married—if they get married—once they start checking the boxes of the traditional nuclear family, they might start to keenly feel the possibilities of how their life might turn out getting narrower and narrower. Which is normal and fine, but there’s that sweet spot right after college where there are just so many possibilities! What a wonderful thing and a great time to take chances, make mistakes with minimal consequences. Figure out what’s really important to
you. The more people you have hitched to you, the harder those risks are to take.

You can of course do that, but it is neither ideal nor necessary. It is merely one way to live your life.

I also can’t help but wonder how many folks on this thread are crowing about the supposed importance of living independently (particularly from their parents) while simultaneously receiving handouts. This area is rife with trust fund babies and people who had their entire undergraduate and graduate educations fully financed by mom and dad. Weddings paid for! Down payment assistance! College savings for the grandkids! And so on.

Some of us had to learn to be independent much earlier than many of the rich kids turned rich adults posting here…

You sound angry and like you have a chip on your shoulder. I'm sorry you didn't have successful parents, but there's nothing wrong with paying for your kid's education, engagement ring, wedding, honeymoon, and helping with a down payment on a first house. There is nothing to romanticize about starting adulthood in some student loan and rental apartment usury trap.

By extension...there's then nothing wrong with subsidizing every expense of your child for life. Of course that happens quite often with massive Trusts for kids.

I don't care one way or the other, but why stop at the things you list?

You're suggesting privileged kids are lazy layabouts, when they're anything but. They're wealthy Type A overachievers. They're going to selective colleges, getting great grades, and they're mindful about finding a spouse. Who you marry is the most important decision of your life. Not seriously looking for a spouse in your prime, when you're surrounded by 10,000-50,000 ambitious peers, is foolish. These kids have it all and they're quickly checking off status and milestone boxes. BA, check. Fiancé or fiancée, check. Grad school, check. Wedding, check. First house, check. Career in a premier city, check. Baby, check.

You’re insane. No, successful 20 year olds living in a “premier city” are not married.

It would be so incredibly odd to be 25 and working at google, Goldman Sachs, private equity etc and be married.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not buying it. The people who get married young typically don’t have as many options and aren’t missing out on much by getting married.

Most successful wealthy 20 somethings are going to grad school or building their career. They are traveling, having fun on the weekends and enjoying hobbies. Not…getting married.

To actually meet a wealthy woman from a place like Greenwich, CT who is 25 and married is incredibly unusual. I can think of Samantha Varvel and she’s Mormon.

If you’re wealthy and have an interesting life you don’t need to get married at a young age.

The whole point of this entire thread is that the new trends IS that these kids are getting married younger.

I’m from nyx. I got married at 29 and was one of the earlier ones to get married and have a baby. I used to think it was a southern thing for people get married younger. Now it seems kids from all over are getting married younger and they are usually the rich good looking ones.

Is this a weird celebrity thing kind of like how they may be wealthy and white but have out of wedlock births like it’s NBD?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not buying it. The people who get married young typically don’t have as many options and aren’t missing out on much by getting married.

Most successful wealthy 20 somethings are going to grad school or building their career. They are traveling, having fun on the weekends and enjoying hobbies. Not…getting married.

To actually meet a wealthy woman from a place like Greenwich, CT who is 25 and married is incredibly unusual. I can think of Samantha Varvel and she’s Mormon.

If you’re wealthy and have an interesting life you don’t need to get married at a young age.

The whole point of this entire thread is that the new trends IS that these kids are getting married younger.

I’m from nyx. I got married at 29 and was one of the earlier ones to get married and have a baby. I used to think it was a southern thing for people get married younger. Now it seems kids from all over are getting married younger and they are usually the rich good looking ones.

PP just mentioned Greenwich, CT which is most definitely call it the NYC crowd. PP furthermore said that other than one Mormon married young, but no others.

Do you live in NYC now? Do you see rich hedge fund, PE, investment banker, Tech bros getting married righ-and-left?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about the other trend of not marrying at all?

I have coworkers with babies who are not married.

This is the actual trend. But it doesn't fit in with the current narrative being pushed

UMC/rich kids seem to be getting married younger. These kids likely have the support of the rich parents.

Poor and MC young adults may not have the money for a wedding or to buy a house. Our kids will have college, grad school, wedding and at least down payment from the parents. I would rather my kids marry relatively young in their twenties and have kids young.

I come from humble beginnings and traveled a ton in my twenties after I started working. My kids have been traveling internationally since they were young. My kids are still minors and been to Europe and Asia several times and the US/Caribbean countless times. It isn’t like they need to spend their twenties traveling and enjoying life. They have been doing this since being born.

Traveling with mama is not what people mean when they say "travel and see the world." That you would unironically write that tells me so much about you.

DP.

What does “travel and see the world” mean if not travel and see the world, which one can do with their friends, their parents, or even by themselves!

Do you mean getting drunk, high, and having sex with random strangers? That’s the only scenario in which you’re right and one would not get that experience traveling with mama…

No they mean exploring the world on your own without your parents paying for everything and holding your hand the entire time. Navigating a foreign transportation system or a language you don't speak on your own without well-traveled parents who can always step in to explain or guide.

I traveled a ton between birth and age 12 because my dad worked for a huge international company and we lived all over the world as he helped set up offices and factories for them. And then even after we settled in the US so I could have a "normal" high school experience we still traveled abroad a lot. So I was a "well-traveled" kid. But when I traveled in my 20s on my own I learned different things about myself. It was a totally different experience. Independence is a really powerful thing to explore and I do think I would have missed out on something if I'd married straight out of college even though obviously I wasn't lacking in opportunities to travel.

I never did the drinking and drugging and casual sex type of travel btw. I did meet lots of interesting people but I have always known to be cautious when traveling abroad.

You’re speaking from an upper middle class / wealthy bubble. The vast majority of American kids, teens, and young adults will NEVER “see the world”. For the average American family a trip to a single European country for a week is literally a once-in-lifetime event.

So you can continue to split hairs about whether seeing the world as a kid “counts” or not, but just understand that it’s irrelevant.

DP. Isn’t that the topic of this thread?

Anyway, the point was that most young adults would benefit from getting TF out of their hometown. “Seeing the world” doesn’t just mean visiting some tourist trap in Europe.

So wait, are you talking about upper middle class young people who have almost certainly been out of their hometown? Or are you talking about lower class young people who not only have likely not gotten out of their hometown, but will never do so regardless of their age at marriage?

Most young adults should become independent and ideally live somewhere else before settling down.

Why?

DP. If you go directly from being dependent on your parents to being committed to another person, you don’t get many opportunities to make decisions that are purely in your own self-interest, for better or for worse. Regardless of what age one gets married—if they get married—once they start checking the boxes of the traditional nuclear family, they might start to keenly feel the possibilities of how their life might turn out getting narrower and narrower. Which is normal and fine, but there’s that sweet spot right after college where there are just so many possibilities! What a wonderful thing and a great time to take chances, make mistakes with minimal consequences. Figure out what’s really important to
you. The more people you have hitched to you, the harder those risks are to take.

You can of course do that, but it is neither ideal nor necessary. It is merely one way to live your life.

I also can’t help but wonder how many folks on this thread are crowing about the supposed importance of living independently (particularly from their parents) while simultaneously receiving handouts. This area is rife with trust fund babies and people who had their entire undergraduate and graduate educations fully financed by mom and dad. Weddings paid for! Down payment assistance! College savings for the grandkids! And so on.

Some of us had to learn to be independent much earlier than many of the rich kids turned rich adults posting here…

You sound angry and like you have a chip on your shoulder. I'm sorry you didn't have successful parents, but there's nothing wrong with paying for your kid's education, engagement ring, wedding, honeymoon, and helping with a down payment on a first house. There is nothing to romanticize about starting adulthood in some student loan and rental apartment usury trap.

By extension...there's then nothing wrong with subsidizing every expense of your child for life. Of course that happens quite often with massive Trusts for kids.

I don't care one way or the other, but why stop at the things you list?

You're suggesting privileged kids are lazy layabouts, when they're anything but. They're wealthy Type A overachievers. They're going to selective colleges, getting great grades, and they're mindful about finding a spouse. Who you marry is the most important decision of your life. Not seriously looking for a spouse in your prime, when you're surrounded by 10,000-50,000 ambitious peers, is foolish. These kids have it all and they're quickly checking off status and milestone boxes. BA, check. Fiancé or fiancée, check. Grad school, check. Wedding, check. First house, check. Career in a premier city, check. Baby, check.

You’re insane. No, successful 20 year olds living in a “premier city” are not married.

It would be so incredibly odd to be 25 and working at google, Goldman Sachs, private equity etc and be married.

I’m 46. When I was in my twenties working in finance in nyc, it definitely would be odd being married that young. The married couples in grad school didn’t really hang out with the singles as much. I did not envy my friend who got married at 22 and had a baby at 24. I thought it was a bit odd and didn’t care.

I have a daughter and would not mind at all if she married young. She is only 7. Haha

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:What about the other trend of not marrying at all?

I have coworkers with babies who are not married.

This is the actual trend. But it doesn't fit in with the current narrative being pushed

UMC/rich kids seem to be getting married younger. These kids likely have the support of the rich parents.

Poor and MC young adults may not have the money for a wedding or to buy a house. Our kids will have college, grad school, wedding and at least down payment from the parents. I would rather my kids marry relatively young in their twenties and have kids young.

I come from humble beginnings and traveled a ton in my twenties after I started working. My kids have been traveling internationally since they were young. My kids are still minors and been to Europe and Asia several times and the US/Caribbean countless times. It isn’t like they need to spend their twenties traveling and enjoying life. They have been doing this since being born.

Traveling with mama is not what people mean when they say "travel and see the world." That you would unironically write that tells me so much about you.

DP.

What does “travel and see the world” mean if not travel and see the world, which one can do with their friends, their parents, or even by themselves!

Do you mean getting drunk, high, and having sex with random strangers? That’s the only scenario in which you’re right and one would not get that experience traveling with mama…

No they mean exploring the world on your own without your parents paying for everything and holding your hand the entire time. Navigating a foreign transportation system or a language you don't speak on your own without well-traveled parents who can always step in to explain or guide.

I traveled a ton between birth and age 12 because my dad worked for a huge international company and we lived all over the world as he helped set up offices and factories for them. And then even after we settled in the US so I could have a "normal" high school experience we still traveled abroad a lot. So I was a "well-traveled" kid. But when I traveled in my 20s on my own I learned different things about myself. It was a totally different experience. Independence is a really powerful thing to explore and I do think I would have missed out on something if I'd married straight out of college even though obviously I wasn't lacking in opportunities to travel.

I never did the drinking and drugging and casual sex type of travel btw. I did meet lots of interesting people but I have always known to be cautious when traveling abroad.

You’re speaking from an upper middle class / wealthy bubble. The vast majority of American kids, teens, and young adults will NEVER “see the world”. For the average American family a trip to a single European country for a week is literally a once-in-lifetime event.

So you can continue to split hairs about whether seeing the world as a kid “counts” or not, but just understand that it’s irrelevant.

DP. Isn’t that the topic of this thread?

Anyway, the point was that most young adults would benefit from getting TF out of their hometown. “Seeing the world” doesn’t just mean visiting some tourist trap in Europe.

So wait, are you talking about upper middle class young people who have almost certainly been out of their hometown? Or are you talking about lower class young people who not only have likely not gotten out of their hometown, but will never do so regardless of their age at marriage?

Most young adults should become independent and ideally live somewhere else before settling down.

Why?

To learn useful life skills like budgeting, cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping, planning time, saving, making friendships, developing hobbies, maintaining social networks.

So you learn to clean up your own sh*t and don’t expect your spouse to do it.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I got married at 23 and had my first at 26, in law school. People acted like I was a teen mom. It was ridiculous. I’ve been married for 17 years and I’m really happy with my choices. I have health problems now that could have kept me from having kids in my 30s. So I’m really glad I got that done in my 20s and I would recommend for my children to do the same.

At the same time, I was fairly mature at 23 and knew what I wanted. I knew DH was a good partner.

I wish I could have had children younger. I don't see what the big deal is. Think of how young you'll be when the nest empties!

I’ll be 46 and an empty nester MUAHAHAHA.

My 20s were hard but I’m happy DH was with me. He is the one who put me through law school. We had marriage, law school, babies overlapping and it was super hard but by my mid 30s life was so pleasant. Now nearing 40 my kids are older and I am really enjoying my life. I didn’t travel or date a lot but DH and I have had some fun trips while my parents stay with the kids.

It always stands out to me that young parents seem thrilled to be empty nesters and “enjoying my life.” There is this mindset that you’re happy the phase of having kids is over with.

Did you not enjoy having kids?
Perhaps you had to give up so much in your 20s and you feel like your time is finally your own? I can imagine you had virtually no time to yourself and had to struggle through lawschool if you had young babies at the same time.

I can’t imagine viewing having a family the way you do. I loved my time in my 20s and it’s now great to have a young family in my 40s.

+1! I read that and thought that sounds sad to be so giddy about your kids being gone. I was married young (23) but waited until 30s for kids. I’m glad we still have a way to go with them under my roof. In my 40s now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about the other trend of not marrying at all?

I have coworkers with babies who are not married.

This is the actual trend. But it doesn't fit in with the current narrative being pushed

UMC/rich kids seem to be getting married younger. These kids likely have the support of the rich parents.

Poor and MC young adults may not have the money for a wedding or to buy a house. Our kids will have college, grad school, wedding and at least down payment from the parents. I would rather my kids marry relatively young in their twenties and have kids young.

I come from humble beginnings and traveled a ton in my twenties after I started working. My kids have been traveling internationally since they were young. My kids are still minors and been to Europe and Asia several times and the US/Caribbean countless times. It isn’t like they need to spend their twenties traveling and enjoying life. They have been doing this since being born.

Traveling with mama is not what people mean when they say "travel and see the world." That you would unironically write that tells me so much about you.

DP.

What does “travel and see the world” mean if not travel and see the world, which one can do with their friends, their parents, or even by themselves!

Do you mean getting drunk, high, and having sex with random strangers? That’s the only scenario in which you’re right and one would not get that experience traveling with mama…

No they mean exploring the world on your own without your parents paying for everything and holding your hand the entire time. Navigating a foreign transportation system or a language you don't speak on your own without well-traveled parents who can always step in to explain or guide.

I traveled a ton between birth and age 12 because my dad worked for a huge international company and we lived all over the world as he helped set up offices and factories for them. And then even after we settled in the US so I could have a "normal" high school experience we still traveled abroad a lot. So I was a "well-traveled" kid. But when I traveled in my 20s on my own I learned different things about myself. It was a totally different experience. Independence is a really powerful thing to explore and I do think I would have missed out on something if I'd married straight out of college even though obviously I wasn't lacking in opportunities to travel.

I never did the drinking and drugging and casual sex type of travel btw. I did meet lots of interesting people but I have always known to be cautious when traveling abroad.

You’re speaking from an upper middle class / wealthy bubble. The vast majority of American kids, teens, and young adults will NEVER “see the world”. For the average American family a trip to a single European country for a week is literally a once-in-lifetime event.

So you can continue to split hairs about whether seeing the world as a kid “counts” or not, but just understand that it’s irrelevant.

DP. Isn’t that the topic of this thread?

Anyway, the point was that most young adults would benefit from getting TF out of their hometown. “Seeing the world” doesn’t just mean visiting some tourist trap in Europe.

So wait, are you talking about upper middle class young people who have almost certainly been out of their hometown? Or are you talking about lower class young people who not only have likely not gotten out of their hometown, but will never do so regardless of their age at marriage?

Most young adults should become independent and ideally live somewhere else before settling down.

Why?

To learn useful life skills like budgeting, cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping, planning time, saving, making friendships, developing hobbies, maintaining social networks.

You can’t learn all of this while at college? Or while continuing to live in your hometown? Or while living with your spouse or future spouse?

Many men don’t.