5 Things to consider now that “real life” is upon you.
1- Stick with your dream! Whether the economy is good or bad, it’s not always going to be so easy to break into the career path you might have chosen, but stick with it. My first career out of school was as a broadcast journalist and it took me 20 months to get my first “real” job. Sure, I remember putting .47c worth of gasoline in my car to get to my minimum wage job to scrape by (gas was only about $1 per gallon so it actually got me to work and it was payday, so I could survive another week!), but those were great months that I got to try lots of new things and meet some great people. Yes, I had loans and relative to today’s economy they would be about $500/month, so I understand the pressure to get something stable, but you have your entire life to work. Find your passion and make that work!
2- Thank your support system. You might have already moved out, you might have moved back home or be couch surfing across the country, but say thank you to whomever has supported you, both financially and emotionally. It’s a small thing that goes a long way.
3- Enjoy this time. I know, I know, it’s kind of like telling someone who got laid off to enjoy their time off because you are stressed to find work, an apartment, “the one”, but if you take a deep breath and try to enjoy this time in your young life you will realize that stressing about it won’t help and it might keep you from enjoying a time that should be carefree and joyous. You will look back in 5 years and appreciate the freedom and latitude you had to enjoy life.
4- Eat something your parents have been pushing on you for years. Mushrooms, steamer clams, brussel sprouts….you will give in eventually. My wife and I both eat things our parents tried to get us to eat for years when we were growing up and we enjoy them so much now that we wish we started earlier.
5- Keep your eyes wide open and don’t try so hard when it comes to finding “the one”. The aforementioned wife, who I met in the summer after I graduated college, was not in my plan. You see, my plan was to move around the country and work my way up in TV and Radio. I didn’t totally abandon my career, but instead worked in local TV and Radio for 10 years, but we met at one of those part time jobs that kept me going. I wasn’t looking for love, but wasn’t so laser focused on my career that I wasn’t open to it either. The love of my life and I have been together for nearly 29 years and married for more than 26. Life is unpredictable, and relationships can be rocky, but when you have passion for something, you find a way to make it work.
Here’s hoping you find your passion, your dream and your “one” and have a fun time in the process.
Best, Wayne