Post-Graduation Planning
Throughout my Babson career, I have not managed to find exactly what I want in my career, but rather a lot of what I don’t want. So when I’m at a cookout and a family friend asks me what I want do when I graduate, it can be a difficult question to answer. I start to list the little things that I’ve learned are important to me – I need a job that involves numbers, but also gives me opportunities to be creative. I want to be able to travel. And company culture is very important to me.
This spiel usually results in a look of confusion from the person on the other end of the conversation. This can be intimidating, but I’ve learned that it’s okay not to know exactly what I want. During my internship this summer (and those of past summers), I’ve chatted with various coworkers and asked about their work experience. Through these conversations, I’ve learned that 99% of people don’t end up doing what they thought they wanted to do when they graduated. Instead, they take away one or two big lessons from each experience they have, and use that to guide them into the direction of the career best suited for them.
I have gained a new perspective on the outlook of my future. As college students, we don’t need to have it all figured out. We just need to make the most of our experiences and let them take us where we are meant to go.