Kids Who Grew Up Roaming Malls & Passing Notes To Friends Usually Have 7 Rare Traits As Adults
kat wilcox | Pexels Teenagers in the 80s and 90s grew up in a much different world. While they would spend hours at the mall running around or passing notes during class at school, kids today don't know what that's like.
With mall culture slowly dying and cell phones taking over the need for paper notes, only the people who know first-hand how much fun these things were tend to have certain traits as adults.
When kids grew up passing notes in class and roamed malls with their friends, they have these rare traits as adults
1. They're able to adapt to new slang
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The reason language has changed so much over the years is because of teenage girls. In fact, women are responsible for 90% of linguistic changes today. Thou was changed to you because of teenage girls writing letters to each other.
Kids who grew up passing notes probably wrote in all sorts of code. And in order to go undetected by their teachers, they had to be discreet, writing creatively and quickly. They eventually became adults who can adapt to changes in language, even if they don't necessarily follow traditional grammar rules.
2. They like unstructured time
There's a certain freedom that comes with being a kid roaming the mall with friends for hours. Especially without phones, spending time walking around and looking in stores, or goofing off in the food court, was their free time.
Adults have so many responsibilities and plan their days down to the minute. We get so used to it that when we have a day off, we don't know what to do with ourselves. According to a survey from WorkHuman, 80% of people say they experience free time anxiety, where they feel guilty or anxious for having unscheduled free time.
But for kids who grew up so carefree, they've become adults who like having time to themselves. They don't feel the need to be productive all the time, and use that leisure time doing things they really enjoy.
3. They value their friendships
For kids who spent lots of time at the mall or communicating with classmates via little notes, their friendships were everything. Every spare moment was spent together, in and outside of school.
They had friends around them all the time, hanging out after class and even talking through lectures, much to their teachers' disappointment. These characteristics translate well as an adult.
In adulthood, they cherish and truly value their friendships. It not only keeps them healthy, but allows them to remember the good memories together, and build a deeper connection.
4. They can read people really well
In a world where everything is digital, it's a hard thing to understand what someone is thinking. But because they passed notes in class and could quickly see the other person's reaction, they've gotten really good at reading people.
In social settings, they can tell when someone is sad or confused. At work, they can read their clients' body language and determine if they're uncomfortable.
They didn't learn this skill in school, but through the interactions they had with others. Even if they can't tell what a person on the other end of their screen is experiencing, in person it's a gift.
5. They make plans quickly
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Back when they were growing up, there wasn't really much to do other than spend your time in the neighborhood or find a friend with a car to go somewhere to hang out. Plans changed quickly and you had to be flexible if you wanted something to do.
Yes, kids spent their time at the mall just walking around aimlessly, but that helped them become adults who can easily pivot. They're low-maintenance in that they can accept last-minute plans like it's no big deal, which is great not just for friendships but in the professional world as well.
Being able to schedule a meeting day of or handling a time change is easy for them, because they simply adjust. It's a sign of their resilience that they developed through practice in their younger years.
6. They're resourceful
When malls were at their peak, most of the customers were teenagers. Likely Gen Xers or Xennials, they were known as latchkey kids who had to fend for themselves until their parents got home. But rather than being bored at home, they'd go to the mall.
They were self-reliant and had minimal parental supervision, which gave them a chance to develop responsibility. A simple thing like planning a trip to the mall or crafting a carefully worded response to a passed note required some thinking.
As adults, they've become resourceful individuals. They solve problems quickly without using their phones, and communicate with others on a basic level.
7. They're nostalgic
With the ability to order anything we want with just the touch of a button, it's no wonder malls just aren't what they used to be. And with parents reluctant to let their kids play unsupervised today and cell phones banned during school, passing notes or seeing teens in malls aren't as common.
Adults who did both of those things are nostalgic for the past and a simpler time. There were no plans or responsibilities, just vibes. They could talk for hours with friends about the future, not thinking just how much communication would change as they grew up.
If they could go back in time, they probably would. When things got tough or complicated in life, they knew they could rely on those around them to lift them up.
Sophie Bagheri is a writer with a bachelor's degree in English and theatre who covers lifestyle topics.
