My Commencement Address to College Graduates

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My commencement address to college graduates…

I had an realization while busy at work, this month (May 2016) would have been the month I graduated from college. I didn’t graduate this month though, I graduated college 1.5 years ago.

On a warm December day in 2014, (winter in Texas wasn’t much of a thing) at 20 years old, I walked across the stage in an over lit auditorium and accepted the university diploma for my bachelor’s degree. (people have questions on my early graduation, I’ll answer them in a later post).

I remember be crunched up in the tiny auditorium seat, listening to the commencement speaker talk to us graduates about starting our new lives and taking chances on things. She gave the usual warm and fuzzy closing remarks about reaching such an accomplishment and wishing us the best on our new endeavors.

And that was it….

After she finished, we got our diplomas and left the building.

The commencement address wasn’t bad, I really enjoyed it, but there was something missing about it. Speaking about entitlement wasn’t the missing part. I’m not part of the group of people who constantly shout “We NEed to TeLL KIDS ThEY R NOT SPECIAL!!!!!”

I was inspired to write this after reading Think. Save. Retire’s piece on college commencement. There is one big thing I would tell to people graduating university and stepping ground into “the real world”.

Don’t drink the Kool-aid: don’t blindly follow what everyone else is doing. Figure out what works for you.

[tweetthis twitter_handles=”@colinashby”]Don’t drink the Kool-aid: don’t blindly follow what everyone else is doing. [/tweetthis]

So often I see recent grads taking jobs they hate, buying new cars with money they don’t have, doing the minimum on their student loans, and generally not being conscious and intentional with their choices.

Despite being done with formal education, they are are still following a syllabus. A syllabus they haven’t even fully examined.

They get a certain job because that’s what they think they need to do, they buy a new car because that’s what’s seen as the right choice, they settle with paying the minimum balance on their debts because debt is seen as normal.

It’s odd how so many people follow it, then later when they want to change things, they’re weighed down by all the baggage they took on.

Don’t fall into this. Things I would like to add:

• your job does not define you
• know your worth and understand your strengths and weaknesses (yeah…it’s more than just a job interview question)
• The life you want, no matter what it looks like, has a price tag (Stefanie O’Connell)

Your job does not define you

What do you do for a living? It’s one of the first questions people ask upon meeting you as an adult. We put people into labels and categorize them because it’s somehow easier.

Your job does not define you, no matter how much you hate or love it. This idea is in part perpetuated back when you were a senior in high school and socially forced decided to go to college.

You NEED to go to college. You don’t want to be a server or do a “menial” job for the rest of your life! (because obviously college is the surefire golden ticket to a great job, right…)

Our identity needs to be centered around our interests, personality, and skills, not our job title. After all, working at a job only takes up part of your life, how do you live in the other parts?

Know your worth and understand your strengths and weaknesses

It isn’t just a question you get asked in job interviews.

Confidence, assertiveness, and knowing your worth are hugely valuable traits to have and learn.

Towards the end of my university career, as I continued to apply to more places, I was offered an internship at a media communications company. The company was a well known company in the area and seemed like a good place to  expand my skills more.

Then, after a good interview, I found out it was unpaid.

You will get lots of exposure and a chance to build your portfolio! – interviewer

It was an opportunity I would have taken as a college freshman with little experience, but I was a senior, confident in my skill set, and already had a portfolio. I turned it down.

Be assertive in your future endeavors and know your worth. Be honest with yourself about what your strengths and weaknesses are.

How can you strengths help you move forward? What weaknesses do you have that you feel are holding you back? Figure them out and start working on them.

The life you want, no matter what it looks like, has a price tag

This is an awesome quote from millennial finance expert Stefanie O’Connell.

O’Connell graduated from university with a degree in theatre and spent the next seven years living the starving artist life as a professional stage actress. Over the years, she has built up a business as a freelance writer, millennial finance speaker, and author. She’s #breakingbroke (love a good Breaking Bad pun 🙂 ) and wrote a great article on becoming a six-figure artist.

So recent university graduate, I’m here to tell you money is a key part of your life, you can’t ignore it or have a passive eye on it. Don’t just go to your parents for financial advice either. Actively managing, saving, and growing your money will help you splurge on that passion project you’ve been wanting to try, it will help you move away from that dreaded job you hate, and it will make you feel more relaxed and not always stressed about money (nobody likes wondering whether their going to overdraft on their account).

Being proactive about your money and being savvy with it will be a key ingredient in helping you propel forward and reach your goals. Don’t ignore or put it off. Start today.

So university graduates, congratulations on accomplishing a big milestone. While your degree isn’t a ticket to success, it is an accomplishment in and of itself. Good job.

As you set out into the world, remember to not drink the Kool-aid. Examine it, add your personal flavoring to it, and make it suit your taste.

What would your message be to recent university graduates? What do you wish you had been told at your commencement address? 

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Colin // RebelwithaPlan

Colin Ashby is the writer behind Rebel with a Plan, a website dedicated to people who choose to rebel against the norm of living in debt and feeling financially unenlightened. He believes everyone has an eccentric quality to embrace and that lattes are sometimes a necessity (despite what the personal finance community tells you).

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