Many moons ago, I was a fresh-faced college freshman at a small liberal art’s school, studying for my undergraduate degree. I was young, but more importantly, I was hopeful, dedicated, and passionate.

My whole life revolved around my studies and my passions. I went to class, studied, ate lunch and dinner with friends, spent evenings in the library studying in between catching up with classmates and peers. I spent weekends volunteering—cleaning streams, volunteering at a food pantry, working with middle school students, spending time with the elderly and so on. I wrote poetry and news articles for our school publications. I worked on the stage crew for our theater department. I joined an off campus sorority. I was feeding my passions in every possible way. And it felt really good.

Then graduation came and I was tossed from the intellectually captivating, socially stimulating vacuum that only a college campus provides to the harsh realities and mundane dullness of the real world.

I got a standard 9 to 5 and started my run-of-the-mill office job. I woke up at the same time every morning, put on a similar outfit (slacks and a blouse), did the same thing every day. Came home, ate, went to bed, and started the same, vicious cycle in the morning.

At first I told myself this job would just be temporary, that I would quickly find a job that ignited my passion, but then six months turned into a year, a year turned into two, next thing you know, I was at the same job for four years. I had lost my passion and in turn gained weight.

I had completely lost my zest and what felt like part of my soul. All the different things I did in college that I loved—I didn’t do any of those now. I had neither the time nor the means.

In school, I was continually growing mentally and spiritually, but it now felt like that part of me was stagnant. How do you go from such a thriving environment with college to the stifling environment of the real world?

College campuses are a unique environment designed to ignite growth, learning and community involvement. And once you’ve been to school, you crave this, almost like an addiction. But the real world isn’t set up the same way.

Work was burning me out, it was like all the colors were leaking from my world and I was living in black and white. So I started looking for something to feed my passion. I looked for after work volunteer opportunities. But it felt like every opportunity I looked at was set up for someone with a flexible student schedule, not for someone who worked forty plus hours a week. I probably tried ten different volunteer opportunities and none of them were a fit. I tried working a part-time job that was more aligned with my ultimate career goals, but I had started an online master’s program at the time and couldn’t keep up with the demands of school, work and a part-time job. Anyone who works a full time job know how difficult is to fit any extracurricular activities into an already packed schedule.

But I kept plugging along. I still fully believe you can find passion outside of your nine to five but it’s definitely one hundred times harder to do so outside of a school environment. In the college atmosphere, everyone is there to help you follow your passions, in the real world—it’s all up to you.

So I continued looking for volunteer opportunities. I tried out a bunch of hobbies (turns out: I suck at pottery but really enjoy kayaking and canoeing). I started writing more and occasionally helping out at a local camp on the weekends. I donate my time and money to charities when I can. I also hold down a full time job. And I’m always looking for new opportunities the could bring me joy and ignite my passions.

Life’s hard outside of school, but I’ve found the only way to change things and make them better is to keep moving and always keep searching for ways for improvement.