The twentysomethings. A generation of roamers, travellers, free spirits, enthusiasts, pessimists, romantics, cynics, artists, businessmen. All of these different people can usually be found in the same person.

The twentysomethings.

A generation of schizophrenics. People who are determined to succeed, but are not really sure how. People who want to have both the style and the substance. Fashion blogs. Culture blogs. Tweets. Pinboards everywhere.

The twentysomethings. People who thought they had everything, only to realise they really have nothing. People like you and me.

In the wise words of Bob Dylan, ‘When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose’.

Before you start pinching yourself to realise that it wasn’t a dream after all. Tomorrow, when you wake up, you will be a little bit older. Your body will be a little bit worse. I used to have this theory with someone that birthdays shouldn’t be celebrated, because they’re just a reminder that you’re one step closer to death.

I consider myself to be a twentysomethings veteran. I’ve got about three years left before the big three-O. I have gone, and still occasionally go, through my ups and downs, the emotional rollercoaster that is involved with living through this decade of self discovery, creation and destruction. Sometimes the ascend is painfully slow, but the view from the top is great. Then you descend fast, faster, gaining momentum, and then other times everything happens so fast you have no idea what’s up and what’s down. No time to think, no time to feel.

It’s not always pleasant. You wake up with a tight chest, and an anxiety in the back of your mind which you can’t really assign to one specific situation in your life that is currently causing you this type of psychological torment.

The sad, cruel truth, is that money is important. And although it’s not everything, it pays the rent, it pays for food, clothes, sanitation, healthcare and all the things you need to practically survive in a human state. This is the trap. You get tricked into thinking that you need A LOT of money to be happy. And you associate money with success, and success with happiness. If you’ve been doing that, give yourself a little slap on the wrist. If you are indeed in your twenties and making a ton of money, already own some property, expensive linen and you have a long-term partner, please stop reading. This article is not for you. Well done, by the way.

It’s ok if you don’t know who you want to be yet. Not many of us do. Don’t be afraid to ask a friend. It’s easy to think that because they’re making more money than you or they have a ‘better’ job or they’re getting better grades, they’re happier. They’re probably just as confused as you are. Your worst enemies are fear, and loneliness (or their baby, fear of loneliness).

And to paraphrase the wise words of Hanna Horvath/Lena Dunham: let’s be the voices of a generation. Any generation. Just don’t let the fear lead to silence.