Your Post-Grad Life Does Not Have To Be Tragic

Graduation seems to be one of the most stressful times a college student can face. Questions are never ending: What do I do now? Will I ever find a job that I love? Do I listen to my parents and find a job with benefits? Do I follow my dream?

Stop. Stop thinking.

This is your future, no matter what dream your parents have for you. Just like Robert Frost said, “I chose the path less traveled by.”

You get to travel the path YOU choose.

There will come a time when letting go of little things seem harder than they should. Like taking the Greek keyboard off your iPhone, drinking on Tuesday nights with your best friends, putting all of your fraternity t-shirts in a box to never to be worn but to sleep in again, and procrastinating anything.

But don’t fret; better things are awaiting you.

Now, I’m not here to say things will be easy. You will apply for more than 100 jobs. You will also be told more than 100 times that you aren’t qualified for a position. You may take a job that you learn to hate, but don’t let that get you down. Take that knife out of your heart and breathe.

THIS IS YOUR LIFE.

Get out of your comfort zone, move to a different state, make new friends, and never be afraid to ask for help. You will always feel like you are disappointing someone, but remember, you aren’t. You have a support system whether you believe it or not.

There will be days that you will binge-watch episodes of Scrubs, you will probably hear a song and have a gut-wrenching moment were all you want to do is scream, you will learn what it really means to pray and you will be brought to your knees crying in the middle of the afternoon.

You are ultimately going to figure out how to love yourself and your dreams. When that day comes, all of those broken little pieces you have managed to shatter all over your shitty little apartment will come back together like magic. You are going to figure it out. You are going to explore this big beautiful world and all of the opportunities it has for you. You are going to fall in and out of love with life. You are going to feel a mix of lonely and content.

I refuse to sugarcoat post-grad life for anyone. Some people figure it out right after they graduate, and I applaud those people. But you will find your group; the misfits who can’t seem to get the real world figured out quit yet.

My hope for this article is to reach out to the recent graduates or college seniors who are scared to face reality. It is bittersweet and beautiful. Do not be afraid, because you are not alone.

Your adventure awaits.