Breathe. No, really. Take a moment to just breathe and appreciate the fact that you can fill your lungs with air, because it won’t be long until you can’t breathe anymore under the weight of your unacceptable and seemingly bottomless student loan debt. Kidding. Sort of
For some of you, graduating from college is truly a breath of fresh air, but for others, this date has loomed over you like a malevolent omen since you started your senior year. But even for the most excited, this next phase of life is guaranteed to come with some anxiety-no-take-backs. Many things are uncertain and out of your control. And let’s face it, your college education has undoubtedly failed to prepare you for things every adult, human-like creature is expected to know. I admit it can be overwhelming, but I assure you this: Your life is not over. It is just beginning.
So what are you doing after you graduate? I bet you’re tired of being asked that, but people sincerely want to know while others just want to compare how successful you are to some invisible metric. First advice, don’t succumb under the expectations of others. You’ve spent the last four or so years trying to live up to the demands of other people. Don’t let the pressure to perform from others dilute your achievement. You’re a badass and you should feel like one for graduating. If you don’t have a job yet, that’s okay. Grads who locked down jobs already still feel that pressure from others.
Breathe. Take a nap. Snore. Rest. Then by yourself and be by yourself. Reflect. Think about how far you’ve come, and where you want to go. Now, get to work. Get to work on yourself. If you want to jump head first into your career then do it, but if you don’t or just can’t get hired then do some other things you’ve been putting off. Write a book, lose all the stress weight you’ve gained during finals week, learn or re-learn an instrument. Travel the world or just travel to the other side of town to that sushi place you’ve just heard so much about. Don’t worry about getting complacent and being a jobless loser for the rest of your life. You literally just graduated college; you’re too smart and ambitious to let that happen to yourself.
Keep breathing. Keep learning. Sweet mother of monkey milk, never stop learning! You have so much to learn. You actually don’t know a lot about anything. But nobody does. Luckily, college has equipped you and hopefully empowered you to learn on your own. That’s the advantage you have over most of the world. Anything you want to learn, you can and it is only a click or a phone call or a coffee conversation away. The more you know, the more you know you don’t know. I love that phrase, because even as you mature and get smarter there will always be something new to learn. It’s wonderful because when you look at your idols, they haven’t “made it” either. Don’t be so hard on yourself.
Oh and let’s not forget. You’re probably poor now. Are you still breathing? Don’t breathe too much. That’s called hyperventilating and it isn’t very comfortable or helpful. Student loan debt is terrifying. Remember when I talked about having a lot to learn? Of course, you do, that was literally the last paragraph. Well, you’re going to want to learn how to make your loan payments, and if you’re like me how to reduce them to something more digestible. I’m not going to educate you how to do that, but I will tell you that it can be very, very, very frustrating.
Don’t compare yourself to others. It’s challenging to write an article like this because everyone’s situation is so different. Every graduate reading this has different challenges and opportunities than another. Some of you have jobs and some don’t. Some of you have an otherworldly amount of student loan debt while others are graduating without owing a single penny. It is natural to project value on yourself based on the success of others, but that does absolutely nothing to serve you. Try to not to give too much weight into any Facebook status that begins with “I’m so honored and humbled”. You’re cool too even without something to humble brag about.
Real life is tough. But know that if you are graduating this year college has taught you how to take on tough challenges and how to prioritize what matters to you regardless of what your major was. Everything I’ve talked about all really boils down to one point: life is a journey that must be traveled day by day. Try not to be discouraged or overwhelmed. Good things are coming to those of you brave enough to seek out good things. So if you remember anything I’ve said, remember to just breathe. Your life is not over. It is just beginning, I promise you.