You graduated! Now what?
It has almost been an entire year since I graduated college, and I know the time is just around the corner for Spring 2021 grads. Along with the uncertainty of life due to the pandemic, life after college in itself is filled with a whole lot of unknowns. I’m here to remind you that it’s okay to be completely lost right now, and it’s also okay to think you have it completely together too. We have a whole life ahead of us, and I encourage you to focus on the excitement of all the possibilities that lie ahead, rather than the fear of what could go wrong from here. Reflecting on the past year, here are a few things that helped me power through the beginning of life after graduation.
Don’t stress too much
This was something that was so hard for me. For the past how many years I was always “Go, go, go!” Even if I didn’t know exactly what I’d be doing the upcoming year, I knew that things would work themselves out. After graduating, the possibilities are endless. No longer being a student eliminates the limitations, and having that degree opens up the door to a ton of opportunities. Just remember there’s not a single perfect path you can take. Do what feels right and what makes you happy.
Be flexible
This was a big one for my fellow pandemic grads! Circumstances change ALL the time. You don’t know what opportunities will be taken away, and which will come your way. It’s important to be able to adapt to the world around you. Your lifelong dream of working at company X may not work out, but another opportunity at company Y does. While you may not think it’s the ideal job for you, sometimes that opportunity changes the course of your life for the better.
Have the opportunity mindset
Every opportunity is an opportunity for you to learn and grow. If you don’t test things out, you won’t know what you’re good at or passionate about. An opportunity that you may think you hate right now may turn into something that you love and make a career out of. The key is to give things a shot. Like the good old saying says, “Don’t knock it til you try it.”
At the end of the day, even if you hate it, just remember that you still took something away from it. You learned about or how to do something new, and you learned that you truly don’t enjoy it! The biggest takeaways in life come from the learning process, not the success itself.
Meet new people
This was tough for me at first. Graduating in a pandemic, then moving to a new city in a pandemic made it difficult. I think this is essential because you’re in a new phase of your life. While I do still treasure the friendships I had in college, I’m in a new phase, in a new area in my life that isn’t as relatable to my friends who are still in college, or decided to follow a different path in life. For me personally, I long for meaningful, stimulating conversations. Finding people I can rant to about work to, talk about the latest news in my field of work (where are my techies at?), or discuss my love for a certain hobby helps me maintain my sanity.
Don’t compare yourself
This is YOUR life, not anyone else’s. Don’t put your reality out there and compare it to how things played out for someone else. Don’t make decisions based on what society, your family, or friends tell you, but take a step back and ask yourself what’s best for you at this moment, and go at it with full force.
BE PATIENT
What’s meant to be, will be. I often have to remind myself of this. Life is indeed a two-way street, you have to give to get back. As long as you put in all that you have, what’s meant to be will come to you.