For four years I was bombarded by family and friends with the questions: What will you do with your degree? What job do you plan on getting? How much do you make in that profession? Where are you going to live? I had as little idea of the answer to these questions as I did of what I would make for dinner that night. I used to beat myself up wondering if it was me. Was I doing something wrong? Is there another path I should be taking? How am I going to figure out my entire future?
The truth is that graduating from college is an accomplishment that you should feel proud of. It does not mean that you need to have every waking moment of the rest of your life worked out. Here are some reasons why.
It Takes Time To Discover Yourself
During college, most of your time and energy is put into external sources rather than yourself. Truly knowing yourself is so important because it reflects in the choices you make, the people you want in your life, the career path you choose, and more. Post-graduation gives you the time and space to explore who you are without being influenced by outside factors. This is the period of life when you are able to fully be selfish in the sense of discovering your interests, being creative, trying new things, and letting go of all that was holding you back.
Life Experiences Are Important
Your sense of purpose and direction can be significantly influenced by your experiences outside of your career. Now is the time to travel across Europe, follow those interests and hobbies you put on the back burner, or volunteer for an organization to help those in need. Whatever you choose to do, just know that this will bring in new opportunities to expand your being and meet new people who may help guide you to a new approach.
Alteration of Career Paths
No one truly stays the same. We are constantly growing and changing in various aspects including our career paths. If you were to look back at the high school version of yourself versus your college self, chances are you would be mortified by your obsession with wearing winged eyeliner every day. But more importantly, you would be shocked by the fact that you are a completely different person now. As you gain more life experience, your interests, skills, and values may change. You might end up choosing a different career path—and that is completely normal.
Life Is a Journey
Learning, growing, and evolving are continuous processes in life. Over the course of your life, you will encounter new challenges, opportunities, and experiences that will shape your direction and purpose. You have full control over the way you perceive yourself and the direction you want your life to go in. There is no “right” path you need to follow in order to “correctly” succeed. It is up to you to live your life and create new experiences that will help you make decisions when you are faced with those big choices. However, nothing is that serious and you should never feel the need to speed up or make decisions that do not align with your true self. Life will carry on no matter what you choose.
Graduating from college pushes you out of the comfort zone that you built up over the course of (typically) four years. It may seem scary to leave a place that brought stability and a habitual routine to your every day. However, change really is good and we all need it; transformation helps you grow and expand to your highest self. It is time we banish the societal standard of “having it all together” post-graduation and accept that everyone is on their own journey. It takes time to find and know yourself, and luckily you now have the opportunity to do so fully.
Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram,Twitter, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest!