Two Years Post Grad (a reflection)

Two years ago I almost missed my graduation.

We were late (of course) and had to park about 3/4 of a mile away from the Van Andel Arena downtown. In our hurry, we opted to cut through a parking lot, only to realize it had about an 8 foot drop off the other side and was lined with industrial sized garbage bins.

What did we do?

Climbed – cap, gown and heels over the ledge, landed on top of the trash can, and gracefully almost painfully dismounted onto the ground – where we then arrived at 9:55am for the 10:00am ceremony.

Now, if you know me you know I always have to pee (I’m well hydrated), so while we were lining up to march in, I snuck into the ladies room. I made it out with about a second to spare – and my parents told me after the fact they saw me running to catch up with the group. I think I was the last person to walk in the arena.

After all that graduation went off without a hitch (thank goodness I didn’t trip!), and we celebrated after with food & family.

Two years ago I had NO idea what the heck I was going to do. And truly, not much has changed on that front. I still don’t see any clear cut career path ahead of me (which I am okay with) and the last two years have been full of new experiences, challenges and growth.

 

If I could give any piece of advice to new grads it would be to slow down.

I jumped right into working full time the day after exams finished and regretted it.

It’s okay if you work a fun job for a few months, or two part time ones, or take some time to travel, or just BE. College graduation was the end of an era for me; the first buying propecia online time in 17 years that I wasn’t in school or focused on the next academic goal. In my opinion, college doesn’t aptly warn you about “the real world.” They don’t tell you how hard it will be, or how it will really suck some days. That there isn’t an end date for “adulting;” that things will only get more complicated.

So, take your time. Enjoy a few months, a year (whatever you can afford to do really). After working in an office December 2014 – May 2015 I took the summer to go back and work at the country club I worked during college (I wrote about it HERE) and I had a blast. As I’ve written about many times, I struggle with corporate America. It’s not the best fit for me, and I know it is not something I will be able to do for the next 40+ years. I know what I would be happiest doing, and now I just need to figure out how to make it happen 🙂

This all seems a bit negative…so let’s talk about all the good things.

Since graduation two years ago I have:

-traveled to London & Paris

-done two cross country road trips across the United States

-moved to California

-met some wonderful people

-gained new friends & lost a close one

-worked at 3 different companies

-pushed myself outside my comfort zone

-laughed so hard I cried

-accepted the fact that I’ll never completely grow up

-spent time in 15 different states (+ a ton of different cities)

-learned more about myself

-enjoyed numerous concerts & music festivals

And so much more.

If you would’ve told me in December 2014 that two years from now I would be living in Southern California I probably wouldn’t have believed you. But that’s what is so great about life, anything can happen.

Don’t forget to enjoy the ride (and do things that scare you!)

Xo, Maddy