A Lesson From Sarah

Day 23, Thursday: Things you've learned that school won't teach you.

In school, you sweat puddles of stress into the creases of your textbooks, trying to grasp the semi-precious nature of subjects and content that you will ultimately never, ever, use again. College teaches us tons about evolutionary biology, organic chemistry, the English language, and world history. But more importantly, in college we learn how to do our own laundry, how much tequila can safely be consumed in one evening, how to construct edible meals out of dining hall food, and the many joys of afternoon naps. But what's missing?

Here are some things I've learned that school just doesn't teach... 

Life isn't fair. Supposedly, if you work hard, it will pay off, and you'll succeed. But in reality, sometimes it doesn't matter how hard you work, because life just isn't fair. It isn't fair when a tornado leaves thousands homeless in Oklahoma, or when an 8-year-old boy watching a marathon is killed by a terrorist's bomb, or when dozens of people die in an explosion at a plant in Texas. It isn't fair when a friend has a miscarriage, or when a child lives a lifetime of difficulty because of a genetic disorder. It isn't fair that I have IBS, or that Stewart doesn't have any hair (although I prefer him that way). And it definitely isn't freaking fair that the SuperSonics won't be returning to Seattle. Don't get me started. Life isn't fair... but it's still pretty darn good. Bad things happen, but it's in our nature to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and keep moving forward. You should still work hard, do your best, have a positive attitude, and hopefully most of the time it will pay off.

Your GPA doesn't matter. Honestly. Since graduating, I've been on a ton of interviews and I’ve never ONCE been asked about my grades or GPA, even when I was right out of college. Seriously, never. And it was kind of awkward the few times I chose to volunteer the information. The only numbers that mattered were how many years of experience I had and how much money they were going to pay me. Not saying you shouldn't work hard to get at least semi-decent grades (because otherwise school would just be a waste of time and tuition), but work just as hard networking, interning, volunteering, and taking as many jobs as possible while you're still in school. Get to know your dream profession and gather experience and contacts in that field. And somewhere in between all of this, make sure to have as much fun as possible. Because in the real world, it's hard to get away with showing up to a meeting rocking last night's makeup and tequila breath.

Travel, and take risks. For me personally, this is one of my greatest regrets. I truly didn't realize how important it was to travel when I was in college. And as we get older, life begins to just sort of happen to us. We end up with more responsibilities, more burdens, and more obligations. But when you're young, you get to do what you want without the weight of careers, families, mortgages, and 401(k)s on your shoulders. So get out there and take a look at the rest of planet Earth! Experience the world and figure out who you want to be, based on adventures and people outside the little bubble that has been your world thus far. Traveling will change you, and you will begin to understand that the world is both very large and very small. I know what you're thinking: What about school? What about my job? What about my boyfriend? What about debt?  Don't be a coward. Almost everyone I know who waited to travel the world never did. But lots of people I know who went to grad school, or have a steady, solid-paying job, did those things after they traveled. You won’t always be young, and life won’t always be just about you... so get out there and experience the world for all it's worth!

Write up a decent resume. Really folks, it isn't that hard to pull together. I'm currently in a position where I occasionally interview job candidates, and I can honestly tell you that if I find a typo on your resume, I'll round file it without a second thought. You're not getting a call for an interview. Misspellings, grammatical errors, inconsistent spacing... these are all details that I consider. If you can't manage to put enough effort into your resume to make it presentable, why should I think you'll treat your potential new job responsibilities any differently? I don't care if you've got experience in a relevant job or field coming out your ears. These are tough times, and there are ten more candidates in line after you, so if you can't manage to use bold and italics consistently throughout your document... buh-bye. Get a friend to proofread, or hire a professional resume writer if you have to, but please, please don't waste my time by giving me a lazy, garbage document (especially one that highlights your Greek extracurricular college shenanigans as "activities"). And of course please forgive any typos in this blog post.

I’ve never let my school interfere with my education.

Mark Twain

 

Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.

Bill Gates