When we’re first getting to college the next four years seem like an eternity. Those 22-year-olds in grad schools look like they’re so much older and more accomplished; they look like they know what they’re doing.
We work so hard to give ourselves a bright future
When we get to college we have big plans for our potential, our futures and ourselves. But as we get further into college, we begin to doubt ourselves and dread the “real world” that everyone always talks about being so hard. After a couple years in our new home at our university, we leave our teenage years behind. We begin to fear the impending truth of what actually growing up is going to be like, with real responsibilities and a real job to pay for a real apartment or other real expenses.
But we still go on and apply for internships, like we’re told we’re supposed to. We trudge along for progress – bulking up our resume and learning skills related to our major and eventually, after being in college for some time, we realize that we actually don’t know what we’re doing with our lives, and wonder if we ever actually will. It can make us feel really lost, so naturally we freak out.
This is normal.
And end up freaking out
Finding yourself is a necessary part of becoming an adult and questioning your beliefs, values and goals can help you discover who you are as you become your own person. Becoming an adult doesn’t have to be scary if you have the right attitude. Growing up is a part of life and as terrifying as it is to think of having to take care of yourself, you have to just know that you’re going to be able to do it when the time comes.
College so far has been a great segue into learning how to take care of and support yourself. This transition is a commonly experienced part of becoming an early adult, and can be rocky at first, but will eventually result in positive change. Change is scary, but not moving forward is scarier.
The scariest part of growing up is feeling like you’re growing apart from your old friends and dealing with the distance between you and your family on your own – this is a lonely feeling. However, it’s important to remember that you’re always going to have people looking out for you, people who care about you and want you to be successful. As you grow, your interests change and you begin to make new friends who share new common interests, which is even better.
Everyone can make it through their mid-college life crisis
You’re never going to be alone in this time of change, because you’re always going to have someone who is going or has gone through a similar situation and will also understand how you’re feeling.
It’s okay to not know what you’re doing right now because you’re learning, and growing up is the biggest learning experience there is in life. Cut yourself some slack and relax, knowing that there are bigger and better things to come, and be positive about how there is success in your future, no matter where it may take you.