Congratulations You Graduated
…..what now?
So I’m a little older than a recent graduate, but I’m not far off.
Now that you’ve graduated, some of you might be moving on to grad school or were offered a job at the internship, maybe some of you are taking the road less traveled and are taking a gap year (my people!! Hey y’all!). If that’s the case, congratulations to you all!
Or you might not be entirely sure what you want to do or where you see yourself after college. BUT WAIT…says grandma and probably every other family member you have…“didn’t you graduate…with a DEGREE?!”
As I’m sure most of you are aware, sometimes it’s not as easy as that. Navigating the professional field after graduating looks a lot more like applying to 100+ jobs just to get 1 interview and finding most entry-level jobs requiring 3-5 years of experience.
So what happens when you don’t know what to do with your degree? Or when your dream changes?
Have A Vision & A Plan
Honestly, this is the most challenging step in my opinion, but definitely the most important. What are you passionate about? What is your ideal work environment look like? If you can’t answer these questions then you need to go get a job–ANY job and learn what you do and don’t like and step out of your comfort zone and take up some hobbies or volunteer.
When you have an idea of what you would like to do then set a deadline for yourself.
“I want to have a job in ‘x field’ by ‘this date’…”
“In 5 years I want to be running my ‘abc’ business and generating around ‘x amount’ per year”
Once you have a goal and a deadline in mind then you need to have a plan A, a plan B, or in my case plan Z subscript ab. Doing this will keep you accountable and working toward your goal.
Seek Out Opportunities
Look I understand that this one might not be easy.
I get it, you got rent to pay. So do I! Social media marketing was something I always wanted to do and what I went to school for, but competition was high and it didn’t help that I essentially had a 4 year gap between graduating and a marketing job.
Sometimes this step means getting your hands dirty…for free or if you’re lucky a small fee. If you lack experience in the field you want to go to then it’s going to be all about building a portfolio and reputation and many people’s least favorite professional 4-letter word *gasp* NETWORKING.
Do an unpaid internship, volunteer or shadow in your field, set up informational interviews with people in the field you want to work in, set up a side hustle, and network. Go to networking events, network through social media, ask your mom, ask your mom’s friends.
……Literally anyone you can think of who can get you somewhere or in contact with someone who can give you advice or a chance…you might be closer to someone than you think!
Keep Learning
You may no longer be a student, but you should never stop learning! With the internet and online courses, knowledge and education are literally at your fingertips!!
Since I had a 4-year gap I had a lot of catching up to do, especially since social media marketing and advertising are always changing. I used any free resource I could, read books, and signed up for multiple libraries to use their paid subscriptions and services for FREE.
At one point I did invest and that was a course for small business women…even though I didn’t own a business. Huh?
How does that make sense?
Well, I’ve always been interested in being my own boss. I’ve had so many previous jobs that micromanaged, weren’t flexible with schedules, and were overall an absolute SOUL SUCK. Also applying to so many jobs that led NOWHERE I felt like if no one wanted to hire me then maybe I should just hire myself!
Through this class, I learned a lot from the perspective of a business and their concerns and the best strategies to reach and engage with their clients, but it’s also how I met Kristy and got involved with 1Social Buzz!
Create Your Own Luck
My father always told me that luck was when preparedness meets opportunity. That has stuck with me my whole life and I often live by it.
Many of the previous opportunities I’ve had people could say that I was lucky and in some cases, I won’t completely disregard my blessings, but many of the opportunities I’ve had have been because I was prepared for them when the opportunity presented itself.
This can definitely relate back to learning. If I hadn’t been trying to improve my skills in social media or been interested in starting my own business then working at 1Social Buzz probably wouldn’t have happened.
So when luck seems nowhere to be found, maybe it’s time to create your own.
P.S. – If you’re frustrated with your current job or working the 9-5 grind and you want to make your side hustle or hobby into a job…then consider our social media course...START YOUR JOURNEY HERE: https://learn.1socialbuzz.us
0 Comments