Subscribe

Photo Courtesy of Hamed Saber (flickr)

Immediately following graduation you will most likely find yourself wandering one big question, what’s next?  At the end of every semester, sometimes immediately following my last final exam, I would have this pit-in-the-stomach feeling that I had forgotten something.  I would have a mild panic attack and freak out as my mind and body came to terms with the fact that I was actually done with everything and could relax.  After your last semester of college you have every right to relax completely.  Don’t worry about what’s next, just yet.  This is the best time take up yoga, watch a good movie, go on vacation to Costa Rica, or lay out at the pool until you’re extra crispy.  Your parents will be hounding you to get a job, but don’t do that.  Seriously.  Take some time to chill out.  After you feel fully rejuvenated, and when you’re ready, begin to work through the next 3 steps.  Over the next few years just let your life take the course you were destined for.  Do your best to ignore advice from parents or anyone else who you believe doesn’t understand you.  This is your time to do some serious soul searching.  Getting a job at a bank just to please your parents won’t do you any good.

“The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance;

it is the illusion of knowledge.”

- Daniel J. Boorsti

Read

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again because it’s just that important.  Reading is probably the last thing on your mind after forcing thousands of facts and figures and other random information into your brain for four years.  However, reading is the one thing that will make all of that work actually worth the effort.  I’m not talking about reading romance novels or the latest best seller from Stephen King.  I’m talking about practical books that will give you the tools to directly improve your everyday life.  Read books about things you’re passionate about.  Read books about your industry of choice.  Read books about health.  Read books about personal development.  Read books that make you think.  Reading has been the #1 most important factor between being clueless and figuring out my life’s purpose. I would say that again but I think bold font is pretty effective.  Seriously.  No job, class in school, major, or mentor has had a greater effect on my life.  Books have made the difference between working at McDonald’s and creating my own personal development business.  You may not have a passion for reading, and I certainly didn’t right after graduation, but it will change your life if you let it.  I created a list of books that have enhanced my life dramatically and listed those HERE.  Take a look at them and let me know what you think.  Make it your goal to read at least 2 non-fiction books every month for the rest of your life.  Sounds like a lot, but really it’s just the tip of the iceberg.  Over 400,000 new books are published every year.  You’ll have your pick, so just get started now.

If this blog post is inspiring you, just click on the links to the left or at the bottom of the post and share it with someone who you think would find it valuable as well. I’d appreciate it and I think he or she would as well.

Explore

If you didn’t study abroad yet, GO!  Don’t do anything else until you’ve spent at least a month in another country.  If you tell me you don’t have the money I will not listen.  I’m plugging my ears right now.  I can’t hear your excuses.  Get out there and see the world!  Literally.  Go exploring and get a first-person perspective on how everyone else lives.  If you live in the US, you are in a bubble and you may not even know it.  It wasn’t until I spent 4 months in Prague that I even had a clue as to how much is out there to see, explore, and experience.  Not only will it open up your mind to new cultures, people, and lifestyles, it may even give you direction as to what you want to do with the rest of your life.  I have friends who now work at non-profits and have insane passions for helping other people.  I know others who went to the Peace Corps after studying abroad because they were inspired so much.  Beyond studying abroad, you can explore your own country, region, state, or city.  See what’s out there in the world nearby.  Go hiking, mountain climbing, sightseeing, or hop on a tour bus with your grandparents and ride around in the wilderness.  Exploration is one of the fastest ways to expand your mind and open your world to a future you may never have imagined.

Dream

Ask yourself this question and then actually do the exercise I’m about to describe.  “If you could live your most ideal life, what would that look like?”  That’s a big question, so don’t answer it just yet.  What I want you to do is take out a piece of paper or pull up a document on your computer.  Write that question at the top and then on the left hand side write down Career, Finances, Health, Spirituality, Relationships, and Habits.  Now go through each of those categories , one at a time, and describe in detail what your ideal life would look like in reference to that category.  Use 3-5 descriptive sentences and think as BIG as you can.  The goal here is to get a very specific goal about what your life will actually look like in the future.  For example, in terms of your health, what does you ideal body look like, feel like?  What can you body do?  Run a marathon?  Swim the English Channel?  What kinds of foods would you eat?  Fast food?  I hope not.  Go through each category and fully describe your life.  At the end, you will have created a very intense set of goals for you to pursue over the next few years.  Now, as you start to let reality sink in, remember this list.  Don’t run out and get any job that happens to be available.  Do something that matters.  It may not even be a job.  Maybe you’ll live at home and volunteer at a hospital.  Maybe you’ll get together with a few friends and start a business.  Maybe you’ll work part-time at Barnes and Noble while you write your first book.  Take your life in your own hands and dream like there’s no freakin’ tomorra!  (I got that last line from Family Guy).  My guess is that when you sit down and actually think about what your ideal career will look like, it won’t include that job at the bank your parents have been hounding you about.  Make a choice for your future, no one else’s.  This is your graduation, your life.  Get out there and do something meaningful.

- – -
Don’t forget to check out my new revolutionary eBook for conquering life after college!

The Clueless Graduate,

Jeff & Tessa Sanders

Jeff Sanders


Similar Posts: