This Is What Real Life Looks Like After Graduation

Life after graduation is exciting, at first. After graduation, you feel free from structure, rules and none-sense commitment crap. You are ecstatic that you don’t have to submit any more research papers or stay-up all night working on a project that you couldn’t care less about. After graduation, you think you’re going to conquer the world. You believe that you will find your dream job and that you will find it fast. You start building-up to this expectation of you being the person you’ve always wanted to be in your twenties. But what you don’t know is that life after graduation is nothing like the life you had when you were a student.

Life after graduation is painful. It’s physically, emotionally and mentally challenging. You start experiencing things you never have or things will start escalating. You get anxious about paying rent and if you’re going to be on the streets the next day. You get hit by this gigantic amount of responsibility. You buy things you need not things you want. You do what you must do instead of what your heart desires. You become an adult by force not by choice. You learn how to work with people you don’t like or admire. You learn to push forward when all you wanna do is give up. You learn to stand-up for yourself. You learn that the road to your dreams is difficult but is worthy.

Life after graduation is loss. You lose friends you thought you’ll grow old with. You lose the love of yourself. You lose family, you lose your sense of belonging. And you lose yourself in the midst of it all. At first, you lose motivation, but you gain patience. You lose freedom to be careless and carefree, but you learn to earn it. You lose faith in the system, but you start believing in yourself. You lose expectations, you lose sense of entitlement, you lose attachment. You lose a huge amount of love for others, but it transforms to self-love instead. You lose who you once thought you were, but you get one step closer to the person you are capable of becoming.

Life after graduation is non-ending series of self-doubt. You get disappointed because you’re not seeing results. You get depressed because you’re not fulfilled. You question your capabilities because workplaces undermine you. You question your worth because everyone seems to just take you for granted. You wonder if you’re one of these people who will make something out of themselves. Your emotions go numb. Your insecurities take over you. Your fears stop you from taking risks. And your voice gets disappears for a while.

Life after graduation is lonely. You’re on your own. You realize that no one is coming to save you. So, you learn to be your own best friend. You learn to take care of yourself when no one else is. You learn to take yourself shopping and on dates because everyone else is busy. You learn that you need to be selfish with your goals in life. You learn to invest in your dreams, to work day and night, to make it your number one priority. You learn to shape your place in this world. You learn the difference between empty company and being alone. You learn to embrace your solitude. You learn that love alone is not enough. You learn that sex is just a bandage. You learn that commitment is a two-way street. You learn that lonely is the new commitment. You learn what actually matters in life. You learn that life after graduation is not some fantasy dream, but a beautiful trauma that will shape you for the rest of your life.