Ok! I've been seeing too many articles scaring off graduates on how graduating is NOT as fun as they think it might be, or how being a student is still better, or how the real world would mistreat you and how landing a job is almost impossible for new graduates because of their lack of experience.
Fine! We get it ok? The world is tough. There’s so much that newly grads have to learn in order to catch up. But scaring them won’t help. Yes it lowers their expectations but even to a point that they’ll settle for less than what they actually wanted is just sad, and all because of what they feel about what they read and hear from everyone else.
Fear not, graduates. I just hope that this article would bring back the excitement and shine in your eyes way before you heard all the negativity. Let’s look at the bright side of things and see the glass half full this time.
1.) You’re done with school
That alone is something worth celebrating. Yes people would tell you, “Being in school is easier.”, “You’ll miss studying and you friends and break times and blab la bla.” Yes yes. No doubt that there are so many things you’ll miss about school but for one thing, you definitely wouldn't want to stay there forever. School is fun, yes but at the end of the day, you’re still just a student. There are so many limitations to what you could actually do. Besides, school is a crazy kind of pressure too. Everything you do, you do it for grades - just grades; all but numbers. In the real world, when you do something right, it means promotion or salary increase - definitely better than grades.
2.) You’re officially on the road to reaching your goals
No I don’t mean that being a student isn’t considered as being on the road. It just means that you’re already out there and whether or not you’re just looking for a job or you’re starting a position, you’re already beginning your journey to a future. You’re on your first step into your success in the real world. I mean so what if you get rejected a couple of times, it happens. It’s part of the learning process. Rejection shouldn't be used to scare newly grads off. It should be used to get them excited. I know this sounds weird but, people should actually be excited to experience getting rejected, because hey! You’re learning. And just imagine how great you would feel the first tie you hear “You’re hired”. Yes, it could get frustrating and tough, but it’s the kind of frustrating that would push you into figuring yourself out on how far you could actually go.
3.) Your hard work definitely PAYS off
Literally. Imagine all those times when you stay in school for a few more hours. In the real world, overtime means extra cash. Imagine the extra projects you do for extra credit - In the real world, extra cash. Getting transferred from the lower section to the higher section – in the real world it means promotion. Every hard work you do in the real world is an investment to your credibility and you actually earn from your hard work. In school you PAY to LEARN. In the real world you both LEARN AND GET PAID.
Sure you’ll miss being a student. But how else would you move forward if you would keep holding on to that thought just because it’s easier and that it’s something you were used to? I think everyone knows that the real world isn’t as fun as people expect it to be … instantly. When you graduate, it’s the beginning of an adventure and sure enough you’ll start low. But at least, you’re already free to start.