Reflections of My Post-Grad Summer

It is officially the third week of August. In my mind, this means summer is pretty much over. It’s hard to believe that just a few months ago I was simultaneously excited about graduation and apprehensive about the future and starting life in the “real world.”

I’ve started thinking about everything I’ve accomplished this summer. I did, despite my worries, find a job and now I’m finally settling in at the office. I have even begun budgeting and saving my money, something I was dreading but somehow managed to handle. I’m successfully handling each project thrown at me and have already made lifelong friends at my office. I can happily say I’ve transitioned into the post-graduate world and conquered all the fears I had about whether I was ready.

Yet, I feel that something is missing, something I let slip by me in a way I never have before.

And then it hits me – I forgot to have fun this summer. I was so busy worrying about interviews, potential job offers, money, moving out of my college apartment, moving into my post-grad dwelling, money, meeting new people, too much responsibility, failing miserably, money, etc, etc, etc, that I somehow let summer slip away. Sadly, and despite everything I have managed to achieve these past few months, I have a nagging feeling of regret. How could I have let this happen? I love summer; why did I not realize it was moving so quickly?

I don’t think this feeling is uncommon; many people start working and forget how to do anything else. However, I vow to find a way to balance my work and personal lives so that I can actually go out and do the things I want to do. This doesn’t mean slacking off or using all those vacation days I just discovered I have. It simply means taking that list labeled “Things That Might Be Cool To Try” and actually making it happen.

- Haley

My College Self

I recently read the post, ˝Do You Have Regrets? What Should You Tell Your College Self?˝ by Tiffany Monhollon from Personal PR. I really enjoyed Tiffany’s ideas on what she would tell her college self. Many of her ideas are what I too would tell myself.

In particular what struck me was the section on ‘Broaden your horizons’ because it is a situation that I am in right now. No matter what happens abroad, I know that I can go back to Virginia and live with my parents and try something else if the international experience ends up not being up my alley. It’s the opportunity to try something different without too many repercussions is what makes the position that much more appealing.

Tiffany ends the post by asking what would we tell our college selves now. I would tell myself to take more chances. It’s not that I really regret anything that I’ve done or haven’t done, but if I could go back I would do so much more, whether it ended up being good or bad to just at least try it. The things that matter to me the most are what Tiffany writes about with relationships. The people I met throughout college are what I will remember the most, not the statistics test or environmental science lab. The good, bad and ugly relationships that developed during college are something that I will always keep with me.

Even though it would be fabulous to go back, it’s also good to take note and make the future that much better, knowing what we know now. I can’t go back to being 19 and terrified of what lies ahead, but I can realize what has and hasn’t worked and make my new chapter that much more memorable- and have this really be the best time of my life.

-Aida

Ten Things That Rule and Suck About Life After College

Editor’s Note: This post is by Jaclyn Schiff who lists her take on the pros and cons of post grad life. Jaclyn is a writer/media specialist based in Washington, D.C. She blogs about Generation Y-related issues and trends at The Schiff Report.

For college seniors who are about to graduate and join the workforce, the uncertainty that accompanies the end of college life and the start of young professional life can be pretty intense. There are a lot of positive things about being in the “real world,” and there’s also a lot of not-so-good stuff. But one thing’s for sure, after you start working full-time you’ll think about the movie Office Space in a whole different way.

So what can a new grad expect? I’ve been talking to friends about the BEST and the WORST things about life in the working world. The lists that appear below are my version of the consensus.

The Good:
5) No papers, no exams, no homework. EVER. When you leave the office at the end of the day, you’re DONE. Unless of course you decide to go back to school. Then you’ll be stuck studying while everyone is at #4.
4) Happy Hour! There’s nothing like drink specials to take the edge off the day. And grabbing drinks with friends after work is way cooler than drinking badly brewed beer in your buddy’s dorm room.
3) No more esoteric lectures and annoying professors. You never have to force yourself to sit through lectures about the history of Russian Czars or the sociology of the fork in the Elizabethan era again.
2) Implementing what you’ve spent your whole life learning. You’ve spent all these years in school learning things that will help you contribute to society. Now you get to implement all that theory at work.
1) Disposable income!! Yes, the two exclamations marks are deliberate. Odds are you won’t be making mega bucks immediately after college, and you’ll probably have some debt to pay off as well. But, you’ll also have more cash in your pocket to spend on whatever you want. I don’t need to explain why that’s a beautiful thing.

The Bad:
5) Weekends don’t start on Thursdays. Some weeks you’ll forget this rule. And boy, you’ll pay for it on Friday morning.
4) Bad jobs usually last longer than bad classes. Unless you’re REALLY lucky, you probably won’t love your first job and you’ll just have to suck it up. Probably for more than six months.
3) More responsibility. You’ll find yourself talking to other people about health insurance and other topics that previously made you snore.
2) No more summer vacation. Yeah, that’s it. It’s over, unless you teach.
1) Working 9-5. Actually, if those are your hours, you’re pretty damn lucky. Almost everyone I know works more than that. But the point is that your days will be less flexible. You get up, go to the same office EVERY day. No sleeping in during the week. There’s just way less variety, it’s not so fun.

Shocked about these lists? Think something was left off? Want to elaborate? Feel free to comment.