For the very first time a few days ago, someone said to me, “So, what are your plans after graduation?” I’ve only been a Senior in college for a week and people are already asking me what my plans are after graduation. I immediately started panicking, and honestly, I broke out in a sweat. I thought to myself “Maybe instead of drinking every night of syllabus week, I should be looking for jobs.” For crying out loud, I don’t even own any business outfits. All I have are scuffed up bar heels and a few different colored onesies - which I cannot wear in the real world. So many thoughts started to swirl around my head: Where would I even be able to shop now? Do I have to trade in Forever 21 for Banana Republic? Is it socially unacceptable to wear a belly button ring once you get a real person job? Do I have to trade in jungle juice for red wine? Do I have to move out of my parents house? Do I have to…. pay rent? Before I know it, I’m having a full blown anxiety attack just thinking about graduating. I’m not ready to be an adult. There’s still eight months left of college, and I can’t even make mac n’ cheese correctly.
Thinking about where I’m going to be after graduation is scary as hell - because I have NO idea. Will I be in California? Will I be in New York City? Will I be in Europe? I genuinely don’t know the answer. I don’t know what I’ll be doing, and who I’ll be working with.
After I basically had a mental breakdown, I told myself I needed to chill the F out. I was getting myself way too overwhelmed for only be a Senior in college for a week. A helpful tip to everyone: It’s OK to not know what you want to do after graduation, and it’s OK to not know where you will be. Don’t let these thoughts take over your peace of mind. Don’t trade in your bar clothes for work clothes just yet. Most importantly, don’t start getting worked up over something that is so far away.
This is the one time where you genuinely don’t know where you will be after graduation. You really don’t know where you will be in September. Embrace that. Embrace the feeling of the unknown. Enjoy the fact that you’re living in the now. You don’t know where you’ll be eight months from now and that’s perfectly fine. It’s exciting to know that you’ll be starting a new chapter of your life soon.
So, don’t worry about having to find a job just yet, or worrying about where you’ll be after graduation. Enjoy the time you have left with your friends, and enjoy wearing your scuffed up bar heels. Eventually, everything will fall into place.
And, if someone says to you “What are your plans after graduation?”, simply reply back that you don’t know, and you’re OK with that.
