Dear College Student,
Earlier this week, I experienced what I like to call a "quarter-life crisis" and I'm here to tell you that it's all going to be OK. A variety of things can trigger this, but for me it was because I couldn't stop thinking about my future after college graduation.
After meeting with my advisor about registering for classes next semester is when it hit me. I was thinking to myself, I only have two more semesters after this one before I graduate and I am not ready to be "a real person."Then the next thought came and hit me like a ton of bricks. With what I want to do with my life, the chance of me getting a job from where I am from is very slim. I will most likely have to leave my family and my friends I grew up with to pursue my career, and that is scary to me. It's like leaving to go away to college again, but probably for much more than a few years. This is especially a hard thought for me to process because I'm from Long Island, New York, and every Long Islander knows that there is nowhere else like it. My next thought was, my first job probably won't even be the thing I have always dreamt about being. Yes, hopefully, I'll be within the same industry, but I might have to wait a couple of years to move up and get the job that I actually want.
Moral of the story: I called my mom and she had all of the right answers (as usual). This is supposed to be an exciting time in my life, not a stressor. Getting a job after college is the thing that we have all worked at our whole lives, and it will be amazing to finally accomplish that. Moving away from the place I've grown up in will give me so many more experiences and open me up to other parts of the country. And yes, I will have to leave some of my friends, but no matter the distance, they will still always be my friends. I've also networked throughout my life and have made so many amazing, genuine connections, maybe I'll know somebody wherever I end up.
But the one thing, that I realized on my own by the end of this "crisis" was that I am freaking out and so nervous about the future only because I am incredibly happy with where I am at in my life right now. I have made the most amazing friends, I don't want to leave them, and I could never imagine my life without them physically by my side. I love the college that I am at and it scares me that I have to leave soon because these few years have been the best years of my life thus far. I grew up with the most amazing people at home and made the best friends, I joined the most amazing sorority and gained life-long sisters, I am at a college that allows me to be myself and offers countless opportunities, and most importantly I have a family who loves and supports me. I've realized I don't want to grow up because I love my life currently, and honestly, how more blessed can I be, if I am able to say that? So don't worry about your quarter-life crisis, because things will be better and you will realize soon enough that a lot more people are experiencing the same things that you are. Like my mom told me, we were always told this would be an exciting time in your life and we're finally living it.
If you're experiencing any of the stress that I felt this past week due to thinking about the future, don't worry, life goes on. I promise.
Love,
Annie
