Do not wait for an opportunity to come your way. I am sure that a lucky few were just great at what they did, and they were scouted out. We see it on television all the time. However, if you want to stand out from most of the competition, or want to be seen, then you need to start working on improving your outcomes by taking the initiative to put yourself out there.
I was brought up to think that If I just did what I believed was expected of me the old way, then opportunity would come my way. That rarely happens. You will get rejected for the first few tries anyway. The only reliable way to achieve an outlet for yourself is to do it yourself, and finding new ways to branch out after getting rejected over old possibilities. In the age of new media, our generation is seeking or getting opportunities that would not have come their way if they did not work to prove themselves with or without a degree.
Self promotion and self love goes a long way in determining who is seen or heard. As a creative, you are told to put a website up or profile and wait, wait, wait for a chance that you will get noticed. Which is hardly a speedy process in getting recognition, but it puts you in the right direction when you find a company that is looking for applicants, so you have the ability to quickly show them the work yourself, rather than hoping by chance they will see your work. However, with what I just said about branching an avenue out for yourself, I am not talking about doing videos in the hopes it goes viral or sing a cover or two of a popular song, and "voila!" instant success.
I knew someone who tried to do all of the above, and met with disappointment, because they weren't doing it for the love of creating. So it came off forced and they got depressed because it was not met with instant success. Which does not realistically happen all the time. What I am saying is that it is a good start to get your work out there, but doing it for the love of it, and pursuing it will you get you farther than waiting to be discovered. Some individuals get burnt out too quickly because of the instant overnight success fairy tale, when it takes on average of four to 10 years to pick up steam.
Start a business, plan out projects that you want to see out there in the world. Create a fundraising page to get funding for it, rather than just saving up from your own personal income. You have to sell yourself, before any one is willing to take you on in the beginning of your career.
Besides that, you should also seek out potential clients on the daily or network so that it will bring you more possibilities of opportunity. Simply put, it is who you know, not what you know but sometimes knowing how the game of life works helps in the end before you miss those opportunities that are staring at you in the face.
Waiting for an opportunity or waiting on my skills to improve did not help me grow. Practicing my craft daily and putting my mindset into focusing on the craft helped me grow. Even during this time at your local university, study your concentration outside of school, and look at what that specific industry is doing at the moment. Outside of the hemisphere of the working career world, waiting doesn't work in social relationships either. Do not let the speed of the world, put you behind. Catch up to it and grab for opportunity. Do not wait for it.
