Saturday, June 6, 2009

a new direction

Do you know the million dollar question for a college graduate?

"What are you going to do with your life now?"

Now what? Now that I have a degree in something that sounded good at one point, but now realized that the degree is not a career. Maybe it's now that I have been to school and am suppose to be filled with theory and classroom knowledge.

I'm not bitter that I get to be put into the statistic of unemployed, unknowing college graduate. I'll be the first to admit, "I have no IDEA what I want to do." Do you know how many millions of options there are available? It can be a bit overwhelming at times. Some direction would be nice.

Especially of late, I feel like there is a giant disconnect from college and the big, scary rest of the world. Everyone talks about leaving college and entering the real world, what they don't tell you is that actually it's a 90 foot drop into confusion moving about 60 m.p.h. But you're ready right? You've got your diploma!

Someone told me once that a diploma is nothing but proof that you can actually finish something. At the time I laughed it off, but I'm suddenly realizing how true that is. Not that finishing something is that hard, it's the starting that really takes the courage.

Starting when everyone is moving 10x faster than you, and expects you to jump right in without hesitating can be cause for a "deer in the headlights" approach. Don't you realize that we (college graduates) don't know how to do the "real world." We didn't go to all those seminars on "what's next" or know to keep up with Godin's latest blog. HELLO . . . aren't we suppose to be trying to make a 4.o and joining the latest honor society to put on our resume, to get the perfect job.

Starting .... it's a new thing. Discovering what you want to do is a starting point. Letting go of the fear that I don't have to know what I'm going to do is a starting point. Waking up believing that you are capable is a starting point.

"Is this fear here to destroy me or to tell me to do something about it?"
- Immaculee Ilibagiza

So what are you going to do?


1 comment:

Unknown said...

I couldn't have said it better myself. Excellent read!

I just have to put a word in..I can't tell you how true this quote is, "what they don't tell you is that actually it's a 90 foot drop into confusion moving about 60 m.p.h. "

I started working for Airwind a month after college and I feel like that quote sums up what the real world is like, still! It has gotten a LITTLE better, but still, it's intense!

Good luck on whatever you decide to do and stay in touch!