Part of growing up is learning a number of basic skills that make life easier to navigate. While most of these develop over time, women typically master them at a young age, while immature men may never figure them out.
Women are often encouraged, or even forced, to take on far too many responsibilities when we are young. Because of this, we often develop practical and interpersonal skills much earlier than our male counterparts. A willingness to learn and take responsibility is essential in life, and when these skills are lacking, the burden often falls on women to pick up the slack. As a result, many women end up mastering basic life skills during their teenage years that some immature men continue to struggle with well into adulthood.
Here are 9 Basic Life Skills Most Teenage Girls Master That Immature Men Can’t Handle
1. To express their feelings in a healthy way
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Due to societal norms and expectations for menmany young boys are still raised not knowing how to express their feelings in a healthy way. Most of the time, men only express emotions when they are considered masculine by society. Emotions such as anger or defensiveness are typically associated with men, while feminine emotions such as crying or showing empathy are usually associated with women.
Immature men avoid these expressions of emotion, even if they are normal, because of the way we think men and women should behave. During our teenage years, women learn to express a wide range of emotions and we are supported to do so.
Despite being inferior, mature men know that there are many ways to express and control their emotions as they get older, but many immature men remain stuck in their old habits, unwilling to change.
2. Accepting rejection with grace
As the youngest girl in my family, you’d think I’d be used to only hearing yes from my parents, but it’s actually the opposite. As I grew into a teenager, the number of nos I heard steadily increased in all areas of my life. I eventually learned to stop being hurt and simply take no for an answer.
For immature men, the hearing does not hit harder. They often take rejection personally and react with anger, guilt or hostility. Mature adults understand that rejection is a normal part of life. It is important to learn to accept disappointment without lashing out signs of emotional maturitya skill that most women master before they even reach the end of puberty.
3. Sharing of household responsibilities
For as long as I can remember, my sister and I took on most, if not all, of the household chores and duties assigned to us by our mother. As a child and in my early teenage years, I noticed that my older brother never contributed nearly as much as the girls.
Now that I’m in my early 20s, I realize that immature men often see cleaning, cooking, or organizing as someone else’s job, which creates an unequal dynamic early on because they know that no matter what, those tasks will be completed. A mature, well-functioning adult should be able to contribute to the upkeep of their home without being asked.
4. Finding and preparing basic meals
Knowing how to feed yourself is one of the most basic life skills, but many immature men rely on other people or takeaway because they never learned basic skills in the kitchen.
As a teenager, if there were no plans for lunch or dinner, I had no choice but to cook myself if I wanted to eat. If dinner was planned, it was typically my mother and I who prepared and cooked for the whole house. As women, many of us learned simple cooking skills in adolescence, skills that many immature men continue to avoid as adults.
5. Managing their own appointments and schedules
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From doctor appointments to car maintenance, adulthood requires staying on top of important obligations. As a teenager, I was strongly encouraged to take on these tasks because it would only help me in the long run. Despite any anxiety I may have felt about making these calls or keeping track of commitments, I was mature enough to handle it all on my own.
Immature men often though depend on others to remind them of important responsibilities. I can remember many moments when women in my life, myself included, had to remind men of their obligations because they were not mature enough to do it themselves. Before women get the chance to enter adulthood, they learn the importance of managing their own responsibilities and shoulder the burden of doing so for immature men as well.
6. Apologize when they are wrong
Immature men will often struggle with admitting and apologizing when they are wrong because they see it as a personal failure rather than a learning opportunity. They may also see it as a hit to their pride. Nobody likes to be wrong, but not admitting it is just immature.
Many women learn during their teenage years that taking responsibility for their actions is an important part of character development. When I was a teenager, it felt refreshing to admit that I was wrong and to apologize to someone. It felt good to know that I was mature enough to take responsibility and that this trait and skill would stay with me and positively influence the person I would become in the future.
7. Communicate during conflicts
I’m sure it was annoying at times for my family to be in a house with two teenage sisters who were close in age. Growing up, my sister and I would get into the most ridiculous arguments about literally anything. However absurd they may have been, we were never afraid to communicate with each other in times of conflict. I can argue that it actually allowed us to express our feelings about a situation more clearly and to be more understanding of how the other person was feeling.
This is an important life skill that my sister and I, and I’m sure so many other women, learned in our teenage years. Yet immature men shut down or escalate conflict rather than engage in productive conversation. While disagreements are inevitable, how a person approaches and handles them makes all the difference. Immature men often struggle to manage this basic life skill because it requires a level of emotional vulnerability and maturity they simply do not possess.
8. To ask for help when they need it
Men tend to prioritize how others perceive their abilities so they can be seen as self-sufficienta perception often associated with masculinity. For immature men, asking for help even when they know they need it is out of the question because they don’t want people to question their competence.
Back in my teenage years, I wasn’t always comfortable asking for help because it somehow made me feel like I wasn’t good or smart enough. But when I realized that leaning on a support system made me feel more confident about pushing forward, I became more likely to ask for help when I needed it. Women learn from an early age that asking for help is not a sign of weakness or ignorance, but of maturity. Immature men often hold their pride to a higher standard than their desire to learn and grow.
9. To take responsibility for their own growth
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Perhaps the biggest difference between maturity and immaturity is the willingness to improve. Women typically spend their teenage years adjusting to social expectations and challenges, so we tend to learn much earlier than men that growth begins with taking ownership of our lives.
Immature men are quick to blame their circumstances, parents, partners, friends, society or anything, really for their shortcomings before they look within. They refuse to take any responsibility for why they are not growing in their lives. Being able to take responsibility for our own growth is a valuable life skill because it teaches us to be more self-reflective. Immature men will deliberately hold themselves back because it is easier for their ego to remain indifferent to improvements.
Yessenia Munoz is a writer pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and writes on lifestyle topics.
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