What I didn’t learn in university
4 years on; Reflections of a graduate
Four years into the so called real world many people do not get time to even stop and analyse how far they have come since graduating from university. Many of us caught up in the so called ‘rat race’ barely get time to actually process and translate what we have or have not achieved in that time. Some have gone into retail work while others have ventured into fields such as finance, translation services or marketing. While most of our weekdays are spent commuting to and from work, working and spending time with family and friends whilst weekends are spent either getting drunk (if you can still keep up, going out to eat and running errands, we even manage to fit in the occasional holiday once or twice a year for the lucky ones both have enough to fund them or lucky enough to get the time off their busy careers.
Before getting into this it is important to highlight that university teaches us a lot both academically and socially. The aim of university is to prepare us for the real world whether that is transitioning into full time employment or perhaps for some of the risk takers venturing out on your own. When at university you learn several skills including how to work with others via group assignments, importance of meeting deadlines, presenting in front of an audience etc. What you don’t learn is that you may not necessarily get into the industry you studied for; you may actually not like working in that particular industry once you get in or getting high grades doesn’t necessarily mean you get the better job!
Once you leave university you begin to better understand the term “it’s who you know more than what you know” as you experience the ups and downs of work ranging from lows such as working under incompetent managers, favouritism in the workplace, or highs such as job satisfaction and bonuses. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you look at it this is something that we cannot avoid hence why many successful people constantly advise on building a good professional network for yourself whether in business or in employment. Networking is something that can be started whilst at university. You do not need to wait for graduation day to start networking. There are many ways you can do so whether it is attending job fairs or local meet ups to applying for internships in the field you hope to get into. Proactively doing so will give you an advantage over other graduates who have not done the same.
Often times it takes people to lose a loved one to realise what so called ‘life’ is about and many say it really puts their life into perspective e.g. losing someone to lung cancer can have a profound influence in helping you quit smoking. Why wait for it to get to that stage why not start living a healthier lifestyle now, why not walk away from that company who values you the same way you value a KFC chicken bone, why not go travelling as you planned 2 years ago? We discussed previously on 3 signs you need a career break how and when it is time to take a career break whether it is to rejuvenate or simply reassess your life goals and such a choice can have greater rewards than you could imagine.
