You may not have been happy about your first few years of college. It wasn't an ideal time, and you ... [+]
College graduation time is upon us. Unprecedented challenges have confronted this 2023 graduating class. During the pandemic, you were sent home from college and told to learn over Zoom with professors who were not well-suited to navigate the new technology. You were instructed to follow social distancing guidelines upon returning to school, and on-campus parties were prohibited.
At the time, you may not have been happy about your first few years of college. It wasn't an ideal time, and you may even feel robbed of the full college experience. However, the lessons learned about grit and dealing with and overcoming adversity will serve you well in your future pursuits. The challenges shaped you to be critical thinkers who are resilient and less afraid because you’ve already overcome living through a pandemic.
Now that it's time for you to embark upon a job search, there are concerns about a possible recession. With inflation increasing costs, it will be hard to afford an apartment and live independently. As money will be tight, you must defer gratification and consider returning home. Don’t worry about failure, as it will be a learning experience. Have hope and imagination for building a better future.
How To Navigate Interviewing
If you don’t have parents with wealth, it will be hard—if not impossible—to relocate from your hometown, find an apartment and work for free, pinning your hopes on actually getting paid sometime in the future. You may not like to hear this, but consider moving back home to save money.
One of the challenges that you will confront is the job market. When you search LinkedIn, Indeed, ZipRecruiter and corporate online job sites, you’ll quickly discover that “entry-level” jobs require two or more years of experience. It's a Catch-22 for young adults entering the job market—you need experience, but no one is willing to hire you to get the experience. Companies will push you into accepting internships—often unpaid—with the dangling hopes of switching to a full-time, permanent role, if you exceed expectations.
When you embark upon your first job search, think of it like preparing for a final exam. Before going on a job interview, research the company, its mission statement, culture, products and services, the leadership team and its stature within the sector. Look out for any red flags.
Before the interview, it's socially acceptable to take a peek at the LinkedIn profiles of the people with whom you’ll be interviewing with. The goal is to get a vibe check of who they are, their backgrounds, where they attended school and where they reside. You’re doing this not to be nosey, but to get a feel for the people and seek out commonalities so that you can engage in polite small talk at the start of the interview, breaking the ice.
Hopefully, you can find the job you want in short order. If not, don’t worry. The labor market, despite the glowing monthly jobs reports, is challenging. You’re seeking a job at a time in which the Federal Reserve Bank is purposely trying to cool down the job market to combat inflation.
The hiring process can feel frustrating. You may experience getting ghosted, not receiving feedback or being stood up for interviews when the hiring manager forgets to log onto the video call or is tied up. In an uncertain economy, businesses slow-walk the hiring process, as they don’t want to hire someone only to let them go a month or two later.
Defer Current Gratification For Future Success
As an adult heading into the workforce, you need to change how you think. It's not all about the parties or big sporting events. You want to lay the groundwork for building and growing a successful career. It will be expensive, if not prohibitive, to rent an apartment in New York City for under $3,000 or $4,000 a month.
If you are not living with your parents to save money, you’ll need a number of roommates to defer the costs. With whatever is left over from your paychecks, put the money aside. Place the funds in a money market fund, diversified mutual fund or other investment vehicle to start building long-term wealth.
Post-Grad Advice From J.K. Rowling
J.K. Rowling, one of the most successful authors in modern history, offered some valuable advice in her commencement speech at Harvard University in 2008. Despite all her immense wealth and fame, Rowling started her commencement speech by sharing her lived experiences of facing failure. The Harry Potter author told the graduates that she often failed in her life. However, Rowling views failures as learning experiences and believes that failure is not the opposite of success, but part of the steps toward the path to success.
She also shared her feelings about the importance of imagination, saying that imagination is the power that allows us to create new worlds and possibilities. She advised the audience to leverage their imaginations to make the world a better place. Additionally, Rowling spoke about having hope. Hope is the elixir that things can improve even when times look tough. She told the graduates never to give up hope, no matter their challenges.
Rowling’s life was not always wonderful. In 1991, the famed author was unemployed, living on welfare with her daughter, and dealing with her mother's death. At this juncture, she started writing Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. It took five years to write. As an unknown writer, Rowling submitted the draft to more than 12 different publishers before Bloomsbury finally accepted it. Her story shows the power of having hope, imagination and the strength to keep moving forward, despite obstacles and failures.
How To Be Your Own Adult
Rowling offered a brilliant piece of advice that is not often talked about. In an effort to help the audience with their mental health, emotional well-being, and how to constructively view the world, she offered that there is an "expiry date" on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction.
She said that at some point, you have to take responsibility for your own life and stop making excuses. Rowling pointed out that many people have had difficult childhoods. Parents are human and mean well, but are not immune from making mistakes.
She advised that it is essential to remember that you have the power to choose your own path in life. Her advice emanated from the years she squandered, blaming her parents for her own issues. The billionaire author ultimately recognized that she was the only one who could alter her life and had to accept responsibility for her decisions and need to stop making excuses.
“We do not need magic to change the world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already.”
