You’ve just graduated from college. What does your upcoming week look like right now? If you’re one of the grads living the dream, you probably have a job lined up and you’ve given yourself a week or two to relax before diving into it. If you’re like a lot of graduates, though, you might not really know what to do.
College took up a pretty huge chunk of your life and picking a career can be frightening – What if you pigeonhole yourself in a line of work that you don’t realize you hate until it’s too late? What if you go to a hundred interviews and never get hired? What if you take a job that pays too little and wind up with serious FOMO while your friends are all buying their first cars and starting to invest in their futures?
Whether you’re actively job-hunting without any real leads or you’re just unsure of what to do next, we can help you make the most of your time. No, we’re not going to tell you to travel the world or give you pointers for a 20-something bucket list – that’s a different article. We’re just going to help you find some worth while you’re navigating that ‘in-between’ stage.
First, if you want to work, reflect on why you aren’t doing that. Have you not had the time to hunt for a job? Has nothing seemed quite fantastic enough? Do you have commitment concerns? Write down a plan and work toward that next step.
If your issue is time, take three days a week and set aside two hours each day to job hunt online using search engines and networking sites. In addition, open your schedule once or twice a month to attend conventions and networking meetings. You can find the time to look for a job as long as you make it a priority.
If your standards for your first post-college job are too high, you’ll want to rein them in during this time of ultimate flexibility. You don’t necessarily need to be making $50,000 right away. Dream big, of course, but there’s nothing wrong with taking a lesser job for the growth potential that it has within a company so long as there is a more senior position that you can keep working toward over the next few years. Most importantly, though, remember that you can get a job that isn’t quite your ideal job now and continue looking for another job while you’re employed.
For some graduates, applying and interviewing for positions isn’t the problem. The problem is choosing what line of work you want to be in for the next few years. Doing research on a few types of jobs can help give you clarity on these options. If you love helping people, as an example, consider human resources, donations departments, public health, and teaching careers. Sure, those are areas that come with very different career paths, but once you have a goal then reaching that position becomes easier. Do you need certifications or a master’s degree for a prosperous career in that field? It’s time to look into schooling. Do you need basic internship in administration before you can be hired? It’s time to pick up a part-time position at a local office. Do you just need to be more knowledgeable on the topic in order to nail the interview? It’s time to pick up a how-to book. Being proactive with respect to your life path will keep you sane during the gap between school and employment.
Aside from career moves, you can find purpose in less concrete ways. Taking on some level of responsibility for your mental and physical health can lead to a great feeling of accomplishment, off-setting the stagnant sensation of being unemployed after graduation.
Achieving mental clarity and calm is a great place to start. Focus on tactics that relieve stress, like daily meditation. You might find that there is more time in the day to read a great book on the porch, broadening your mind, so take advantage of that. Perhaps, instead, you benefit from writing in a journal because you’re better able to think through your emotions that way. Maybe, though, you just want to start sticking to a schedule in order to minimize blocks of unconstructive time – whatever works for you. Putting your own sense of mental health at the front of your to-do list will allow you to be more confident in your decisions and in yourself, which can be crucial to having a sense of purpose during this confusing time.
Then there’s the physical side of things. Jump on the treadmill or go for a walk every day to keep your body from feeling sluggish or anxious. Stretch before you fall asleep to relax a little better or simply join an exercise class to keep yourself feeling socially relevant while working up a sweat. You’ll probably find that you sleep better and feel less physically inept when you maintain some level of fitness. Moving toward overall wellness, including in the physical realm, will promote your sense of ability and self-worth – two things that come across clearly during a job interview.
Above all, though, focus on your relationships. Once you’re employed, you may have less time to spend with friends, family, and significant others. Suddenly, those days that you were free to stop by their offices for lunch or able to drop by for drinks in the evening become a distant memory and seeing those people once a month becomes the norm. While you have the time, foster those relationships, romantic and platonic, so that they still have a past to stand on when you do finally get employed. We sometimes miss out on opportunities to feel companionship, camaraderie, and belonging, which can offset experiences like depression. Very few periods in life support relationships like this time does. Soak it in before it’s too late!
