They say your twenties is the most influential decade of your life. It might be when you graduate, and when you have your first proper job; when you move out of your parents’ house – and maybe when you buy your own first home; when you meet new friends, who might prove to be your lifelong mates; and it might be when you meet your partner, and when you get married, and maybe even when you start a family; and it might be when you decide on your chosen career, or industry – or experiment with a multitude of those things. Your twenties can be pretty pivotal, not only in shaping who you are now, and for the next few years, but who you will be, and what you will do, and how you will live for the rest of your life.
This
time last year I spoke to 9 recent graduates about what they’d done, what they
were doing, and what they were hoping to go on and do. They had degrees in everything
from Music to PR, and whilst some had jumped straight into the world of work,
others were continuing to study or taking some time out to travel. It showed
that just because you did the same degree as someone else, or went to the same
university as someone else, everyone’s path is different – and, as a graduate,
it was one of the first times in your life that you were in control of the
first steps on that path.
For
many, graduate life might not be quite all it’s cracked up to be. Whether it’s
never really knowing what you want to do, or wondering if you’ll ever be able
to buy a house or just have to pay extortionate rent forever, we all face
challenges on the way to…and through adulthood. We might realise that the job
that once seemed so attainable is actually a millions miles away because we don’t
have 10 years’ experience, and can’t live on £10,000 a year. Or maybe we’ll
throw ourselves into something, to later realise that this isn’t where we
wanted to be. We’ll meet the success stories and the grafters, and the drifters
and the bored but stable. And somewhere down the line, we’ll find our path and
be clear how we’re going to stay on it.
So
this summer I want to speak to a different group of people: the once graduates,
now grown-ups. Over the next couple of months, I’ll be talking to people whose
university days seem a distant memory and who have been making their way in the
real world. I’ll be learning about the expectation vs. the reality of graduate
life, and the journeys they’ve been on to get where they are today. I want to
know where they see themselves going, simultaneously inspired and disheartened,
by the trials and tribulations of everyday life, and what else they’re hoping
to learn along the way.
Keep
your eyes peeled.
And I’m always looking for contributions, so if
you want to share your story, get in touch!