Your Parents Did A Great Job Raising You If These 11 Cheap Thrills Excite You As An Adult
Finding small moments of joy in your daily routine is one of the healthiest things your parents could have taught you to do.
Mavo | Shutterstock.com The chaos of daily life can be a lot to handle, especially if you weren’t taught early in life how to regulate and cope with complex emotions or prioritize yourself, so it's important not to overlook the soothing power of seemingly mundane tasks and experiences. While there are plenty of moments you can pause and enjoy every day when you reach adulthood — like gazing on your freshly cleaned the house or relaxing at the end of a productive day — many are often overlooked. If your parents did a great job raising you, however, these kinds of cheap thrills still excite you as an adult.
There are many benefits to slowing down and intentionally enjoying the present moment. If you’re already leading with this kind of intentional mindset, not only can you appreciate the little things in life, but you have a fine-tuned capacity to prioritize and support your emotional well-being, relationships, and personal health.
Your parents did a great job raising you if these 11 cheap thrills excite you as an adult
1. Debating complex topics
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Especially in today’s world, when so many are struggling through a time of polarization and disconnect, your parents did a great job raising you if you find excitement in healthy debates and discussing differences in perspective and opinions.
Often learned through parents' willingness to have complex and sometimes uncomfortable discussions with their children about the state of the world, educational topics, emotional regulation, or even expressing needs, being able to debate and find purpose in communicating with others is an incredible skill.
In addition to helping foster better connections founded on mutual feelings of respect and understanding, complex debates can also help children develop critical thinking skills that will set them up for success in adulthood.
2. Making a mess
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Whether you’re living in clutter or finding joy experimenting with messy artistic hobbies, your parents did a great job raising you if making a mess excites you as an adult. According to a study published in the Psychological Science journal, messiness, typically condemned by traditionalist parents, is actually an indicator of creativity in both children and adults.
While it may be uncomfortable for parents who’ve used cleaning or clean spaces to help support their own emotional well-being, healthy parents set realistic boundaries around their kids' spaces, recognizing that messiness is a result of creative play, which is an important part of building intelligence, according to a 2023 study.
As an adult, accepting and finding excitement amid messy and sometimes chaotic spaces can help support creativity and intelligence, whether it’s at home or in environments like the workplace. Without the guilt-ridden mentality of always maintaining a clean space, you also likely have more mental capacity for social connection, investing in hobbies, and regulating your emotions.
3. Daydreaming
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Whether it’s making up stories in your head before going to sleep or daydreaming on the clock at work, finding peace and tranquility in your wandering mind is one of the signs your parents did a great job raising you. Rather than condemning you for lacking focus or pushing you towards more practical skills in life, they likely celebrated and empowered you to lean into creativity, crafting a more confident and self-aware mindset that serves you well in adulthood.
According to a study published in the Neuropsychologia journal, people who daydream are not just innovative and creative thinkers, they’re also much more likely to be of high intelligence. So, if your parents encourage you to dream big and let your mind wander in passive discussions and debates, that could be one of the reasons you find daydreaming to be an exciting cheap thrill as an adult.
4. Listening to classical music
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Many of the habits, behaviors, and hobbies we nurture in adulthood stem from our childhood experiences — what our parents encouraged us to lean into, the kind of things they modeled, and even the values and beliefs they chose to uphold. Even for things as seemingly subtle as a diverse music taste, those choices and memories play a role in how we choose to fill our time and cope with stress as adults.
Fortunately for traditionalist music enthusiasts, classical music has a number of cognitive benefits, from helping to stimulate concentration and focus to improving cognitive function and even encouraging a more positive mood in listeners.
So, if your parents were always playing classical music around the house or encouraging you to explore your music taste in your free time, chances are you’re more well equipped to handle the stress of a hard deadline or chaotic energy at work.
5. People-watching
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Especially for children whose parents encouraged them to embrace their own creativity and invest time and passion in their hobbies when they were growing up, embracing boredom likely unlocked a mindset with the power to improve their lives as adults.
According to experts from the Child Mind Institute, boredom can help to facilitate creativity, critical thinking skills, and even independence in young kids, depending on how they choose to fill their time. If they had parents who encouraged them to lean into boredom and find ways to keep themselves busy or entertained rather than relying on someone else for attention, they likely adopted habits like people-watching that followed them into adulthood.
Despite being a cheap thrill that may not be incredibly exciting for the majority of adults, people who have the creativity to make up stories and get imaginative while people-watching often benefit from letting their mind wander from the chaos of their daily life.
6. Planning and setting goals
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Parents who instill both a sense of creativity and practicality in their children often set them up for success in adulthood. In addition to giving them the tools they need to invest in their personal interests and hobbies, they also teach the power of organization, planning, and setting boundaries and goals.
From planning out your days to writing New Year’s resolutions, your parents did a great job raising you if planning and goal-setting excite you as an adult.
7. Connecting with strangers
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According to a study published in PNAS, feeling comfortable and empowered enough to talk to strangers can boost your happiness and confidence, both in social situations and at home. Referred to as “relational diversity” by the study’s authors, the ability to talk to and gain experience from a wide variety of people — both in your life and beyond — can set adults up for success navigating every aspect of their lives.
While it might be one of the subtle behaviors parents unconsciously teach their children early in life, talking to others and leading with empathy themselves, it’s a cheap thrill that not many people make time for in their lives as adults, despite the benefits.
8. Re-reading childhood books
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While revisiting childhood experiences and memories isn’t entirely comfortable for many people, your parents did a great job raising you if the nostalgia of re-reading childhood books excites you as an adult. Not only do you have fond memories to look back on when reading old books, looking through photos, or connecting with a family member, but you’re also given opportunities to connect with your inner child again in ways that can boost positive emotions and self-esteem.
Of course, for adults who have happy memories to look back on from their childhood, this can spark nostalgic feelings that both reaffirm their sense of belonging and help to alleviate feelings of loneliness, according to a study published in the Frontiers in Psychology journal. In addition to helping combat the consequences of isolation, people who revisit their childhood books and memories often experience a greater sense of purpose and meaning in their lives.
9. Thrift shopping
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While a study from the Journal of Consumer Marketing argues that nearly half of all households find ways to collect items at home, whether by second-hand shopping or reimagining older items, many people who find excitement in thrifting and collecting are fueled by the stories and memories associated with the items they find.
Rather than trying to keep up with a trend cycle or portray a certain image with their clothing, behaviors that are often sparked by low self-esteem and attention-seeking behavior in childhood, adult children of parents who encouraged them to intentionally set hobbies find joy in subtle things like this.
10. Dancing around the house
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Despite internal insecurities associated with dancing that may be challenging for some to overcome, this behavior has been shown to have the power to positively influence us in many ways — socially, emotionally, and even physically.
From boosting our dopamine levels and promoting a healthier attitude to helping combat physical illness by assisting cognitive function and our nervous systems, people who’ve picked up on the habit of dancing around the house — especially without guilt or embarrassment — were likely raised by great parents who prioritized making their kids feel safe and loved without judgment.
11. Trying out a new hobby
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While many hobbies can be financially inaccessible for people to simply test out, there are many different interests that can be relatively cheap to try — from moving your body to reading a new genre or even dabbling in an art form like drawing or painting.
Experimenting with new things and embracing the unknown of a new hobby is often uncomfortable, but Dr. Alex Lickerman explained that that adults who are open to embracing uncertainty often force themselves to grow — leading to a more positive sense of self-esteem and confidence.
While some parents might have subconsciously instilled insecurity in their kids by viewing challenges or uncertainty as things to fear, but it’s a sign that your parents did a great job raising you if trying something new is exciting for you rather than anxiety-inducing.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.