The other day, I watched my teenage grandson struggle with a simple problem: his phone died, and he genuinely didn’t know how to get to his friend’s house without GPS.

It struck me how much the world has changed, and how many practical skills my generation picked up just by virtue of when we were born.

Growing up as the middle child of five in working-class Ohio during the 60s and 70s, life was different. We didn’t have much money, but we had something else: the necessity to figure things out on our own.

My father worked double shifts at the factory, my mother stretched every dollar, and we kids learned to navigate the world without the safety nets and technology that exist today.

These weren’t skills we set out to learn. They just happened naturally, the way you pick up a language when you’re immersed in it.

mAnd looking back now, I realize how valuable they were.

1) Getting from point A to B without technology

Remember unfolding a massive paper map in the car while your dad drove? I sure do. Before every family trip, we’d plan the route, memorize major highways, and actually pay attention to landmarks and road signs.

When I started my first job as a claims adjuster, I had to visit sites all over the state. No GPS, no smartphones. Just a map, a notepad with directions, and the ability to stop and ask for help when you got lost. Which I did, plenty of times.

This taught us spatial awareness and the confidence to navigate unfamiliar places. More importantly, it taught us that getting lost wasn’t the end of the world. You’d figure it out, ask someone at a gas station, backtrack if needed. The journey became part of the adventure, not just an obstacle between you and your destination.

2) Entertaining ourselves with absolutely nothing

What did kids do before screens? Well, we got creative. Really creative.

I shared a bedroom with two of my brothers, and on rainy days when we couldn’t go outside, we’d build forts out of blankets, create elaborate stories with our handful of toys, or just sit and talk for hours. Boredom wasn’t something to be immediately solved by handing us a device.

This forced imagination to kick in. We learned to generate our own entertainment, to find fascination in ordinary things. I see my grandchildren now, and the moment they’re bored, they reach for a tablet. They’re missing out on that particular kind of creativity that only comes from having nothing but time and your own mind.

3) Fixing things instead of tossing them

When something broke in our house, you fixed it. Simple as that.

My father taught me how to patch a bicycle tire, repair a broken radio, and figure out why the lawnmower wouldn’t start. Not because he was particularly handy, but because buying new wasn’t an option. My mother darned socks, repaired torn clothing, and made do with appliances that were held together with duct tape and determination.

This wasn’t just about saving money. It was about understanding how things worked, developing problem-solving skills, and not being helpless when something went wrong. I still use those skills today in my woodworking hobby, and there’s something deeply satisfying about fixing something with your own hands.

4) Making a meal from whatever’s in the pantry

My mother was a master at this. She could look in a nearly empty cupboard and somehow produce a decent dinner. No ordering takeout, no running to the store for one missing ingredient.

You learned to substitute, to improvise, to make do. Cooking wasn’t about following a recipe perfectly; it was about feeding your family with what you had available. This taught resourcefulness and creativity in the kitchen.

When I started cooking seriously after retirement, I realized I’d been drawing on these lessons my whole life. The ability to look at random ingredients and figure out a meal is a surprisingly useful skill, even in our age of abundance.

5) Talking through disagreements face to face

Here’s something we couldn’t avoid: actual human interaction. If you had a problem with someone, you dealt with it in person. No hiding behind text messages or social media posts.

During my 35 years in middle management at the insurance company, I witnessed countless office conflicts. But I also noticed that my generation tended to handle disagreements differently than younger colleagues. We’d learned early on how to read body language, pick up on tone, and navigate uncomfortable conversations without a screen as a buffer.

Sharing a bedroom with two brothers taught me about compromise and direct communication pretty quickly. You couldn’t ghost your sibling when you literally slept three feet away from each other. You had to work it out, face to face, even when it was uncomfortable.

6) Spending time alone without constant connection

This might sound strange to younger folks, but we were comfortable being alone with our thoughts. Actually alone, not just physically alone while scrolling through social media.

I’d spend hours reading mystery novels, walking through the neighborhood, or just sitting on the porch watching the world go by. These quiet moments weren’t filled with anxiety about missing out or the compulsion to document everything for an audience.

This built a different kind of resilience. You learned to be comfortable in your own company, to process your thoughts without external input, and to find peace in solitude. Even now, my morning walks with Lottie are about that same quiet reflection, though I’ll admit I sometimes have to resist the urge to check my phone.

7) Waiting for things you wanted

Patience wasn’t a virtue we cultivated; it was a requirement. Want to watch your favorite TV show? You waited until it aired, at its scheduled time, once a week. Miss it? Too bad, wait for reruns.

Want a new toy? You saved your allowance for weeks or put it on your birthday wish list and hoped for the best. Instant gratification simply wasn’t part of our world.

This taught delayed gratification in a way that’s hard to replicate now. You learned to anticipate, to save, to appreciate things more when you finally got them. I’ve seen this with my grandchildren, who sometimes seem overwhelmed by having too many choices available instantly.

8) Spending unsupervised time outdoors

We’d leave the house in the morning and wouldn’t come back until the streetlights came on. Our parents had no idea where exactly we were, and that was just normal.

We explored the neighborhood, built tree forts, played in creeks, and generally roamed free within a certain radius. This wasn’t neglect; it was childhood. We learned to assess risks, make decisions without adult input, and develop independence.

I know the world feels more dangerous now, though statistics say it’s actually safer. But something was gained in those unsupervised hours that’s hard to quantify. A sense of capability, maybe. The confidence that you could handle whatever came your way.

9) Living without constant documentation

We lived our lives without the need to photograph or share every moment. Family dinners happened without anyone pulling out a camera. Vacations were experienced, not performed for an audience.

Our Sunday family dinners, which happened no matter how tight money was, were just for us. No one was thinking about the lighting or the angle or how it would look to others. The experience was the point, not the documentation of it.

This taught us to be present, to fully engage with moments as they happened. When my youngest grandchild was born, I had to consciously remind myself to put the phone away and just be there, really be there, in that moment.

Final thoughts

I’m not saying everything was better back then. It wasn’t. We’ve gained a lot with modern technology and conveniences. But we also lost something in the exchange.

These skills, these ways of navigating the world, they made us resilient in specific ways. Self-reliant. Patient. Resourceful. Comfortable with uncertainty and discomfort.

The question I keep coming back to: What can we take from those experiences and pass on to the next generation? Not by trying to recreate the past, but by understanding what was valuable about it?

What skills do you think today’s kids are learning naturally that we missed out on?