Dear soon-to-be graduates,

First of all, Congratulations! You’ve almost made it to the end of a long and difficult journey through the American education system. You deserve to be celebrated. Now, maybe it’s just me, but graduating from college feels a lot more stressful than it is relieving.

It could be that it’ll feel more like a celebration once I’ve actually graduated. But think about this. We have, at this point, spent somewhere around sixteen consecutive years in school, and now we’re just supposed to know how to function as normal adults in society.

Is there some sort of tour guide for adulthood somewhere? A rulebook? A YouTube tutorial? Any of those would be ideal and incredibly helpful. If you’re anything like me, you’re probably scared of what post-college life is going to look like. Unless you’re going to grad school, you’ve only got so much time left to basically have the entirety of your future planned out. It’s time to sink or swim. You could always take the approach of letting the chips fall where they may, but then you run a higher risk of sinking.

But have you noticed that we haven’t really been taught how to swim (metaphorically)? We’ve got all this education and a pretty little sheet of paper that says we’re eligible for a career, but how do you obtain one? What steps are you supposed to take to make it in the world? Well, fear not. We’ll get through this together.

In weeks to come, I’ll be sharing tips and tricks for anyone who’s afraid of life after graduation. Not only do I want to be ready, but I want to share the information I acquire with everyone who might be as nervous as I am to tackle this crazy thing we call the future. The biggest and most important thing that I’ve learned on my journey to graduate is the importance of preparation. So let’s prepare. Prepare to live a full and happy life doing something that you’re passionate about.

Prepare to have the freedom to move as you please without worrying about an 11:59pm deadline. Prepare to take time for yourself and put your mental and emotional health first. But most importantly, prepare to fail. Failure is inevitable and it’s not a bad thing. It’s merely a stepping stone to growth. Ladies, gentlemen, and others…you can do this. You WILL do this. Now, let’s get to work!