Picture this. You are almost done with college. You are about to walk away from a place you have considered home with a piece of paper in your hand that somehow makes you qualified to enter the real world. Here's the tricky part though, many of us have no idea what we will do when we get there.
Unfortunately this isn't much just a picture. It's real and it's scary and to those of you who feel this way, you are not alone. It happens constantly. You are not naive for not having a plan. In fact, you have a very special opportunity that not everyone in this world is blessed with.
We all remember when everyone was asking us in high school where we wanted to go to college, well that matter seems minuscule now compared to this. Now, when family, friends, professors, or just random acquaintances speak those gut wrenching words, "what are you doing after college?", needless to say it is an entirely different story.
No longer do these questions feel as though they are just about the next little chunk of time in your life. A mere couple of years; a new stage and a new place to explore. Suddenly, all of these questions are about the rest of your life.
What career will you choose?
Will this career make you happy?
Do you actually have enough money to support your self until you can fully pursue it?
I could go on for days, as I'm sure the questions do for many of you who feel at a loss when it comes to what you will do with the rest of your life. I have personally been in the same boat for the past year now, and lately I have found a bit of anxiety in thinking about what life really will be like after college. I have come to the realization, that not knowing my exact plan is one of the most exciting experiences I've ever had.
I wish I could say there was a single moment when I realized that not having everything figured out wasn't the end of the world, but that wasn't the case. Becoming content with this idea took hours of self reflection, constant trips to my school advisor, and the all too frequent shedding of tears. But while the process is going to be different for everyone, the outcome and ultimate gist of my point is this:
You have a college degree that you just earned with blood, sweat, and tears, and you have the right to use it to better this world in any way you please. And in fact, you are blessed a unique set of circumstances that some individuals won't have. Take the opportunity to travel. Most of the jobs you could potentially have will require experience, and yes, life experience does count. Volunteer with a non-profit that you are interested in. Volunteer work can lead to some amazing jobs, and making valuable connections in environments you are happy to be in make that an even better opportunity.
Take a chance and move somewhere you have always wanted to live, and don't be afraid to dig into your savings account to start an adventure. The possibility for you to find something that you are truly passionate about can happen after you walk across the stage. Your twenties are a time for exploration and self discovery. Too many individuals get so caught up in trying to have everything figured out by the time you actually have to be on your own, but this is not necessary.
It is okay to not have a high-paying job right out of college. Ask almost any successful individual and they will tell you that all of the answers are not going to just fall into your lap when it comes to creating a wholesome and fortunate lifestyle for your self. Instead, we all have this pure and wonderful chance to explore the world and explore ourselves, and most importantly, we have the opportunity to make a difference in places that we haven't even discovered yet.
So to all of those "I don't knows" and "what do I do's", go find your niche. Because the answer to all of those questions about where you will go and what you will do, is that you are about to start a dauntless journey, to figure it out.
