For all those like me that just graduated university, CONGRATULATIONS! This is probably one of the biggest accomplishments of ours lives, so we have to take a bit of time to really soak it in.
Alright, now let’s get to the real life part.
There are so many things that are changing in our lives at this time, it’s important to sit down and think about a few of the things that you need to do as a new grad. Because trust me, in my experience, there’s a lot to do.
It’s crazy to think that you won’t be heading back to campus in the fall. It’s been 2, 4, (in my case, 5) years since you’ve done anything else. Heck, if you’re like me, there hasn’t been a year you haven’t been in school since before Pre-K. Now that’s a LONG time.
But, don’t fret, the next stage is going to be FUN. I’m determined. What could be more fun than no more midterms, papers or finals seasons?! To make sure it’s fun though, think about a few things you need to do now.
4 Things You Need to Do as a New Grad
1. Create a Budget
As a new grad, this might be the first time in your life that you’re making an actual livable amount of money. That comes with a lot of possibilities, both good and bad. So now’s when you should really take a peak at your finances and make sure they’re either in check, or you can get them in check.
At this point in your life, it’s unlikely that you have a ton of savings or disposable income (aka money to spend on super exciting purchases, like a boat). So, it’s important to make sure you’re creating a budget that not only works for what to want to achieve, but is also realistic.
Have all your fixed expenses in one area and your variable expenses in another. Fixed being things you know you have to pay for: rent, car insurance, groceries, etc, while variable is things that you don’t necessarily have an amount set such as entertainment. This will allow you to better see what you’re spending your available cash on. If you’re eating out a lot, your variable expenses will be high, etc.
Make sure you’re budgeting in putting money towards a savings account and any debt you may have. This is important because creating an emergency fund right off the bat is imperative to make sure you’d be okay if anything happened. Plus, since you budget it into your month, it’s more likely that the money will actually go towards saving/paying off debt!
Some people to help you out in your financial goals today: For people in the USA, try Her First 100k. In Canada, take a peak at Mixed Up Money.
2. Organize Your Life
This one has a few subheadings because organize your life is pretty broad. I’m telling you though, it’s an important one.
A) Declutter
You probably have a bunch of crap (for lack of better word) from your time in university. I’m talking about old papers, now useless textbooks, old activity t-shirts, etc. You know what I’m talking about! It always seems to pile up and you’ll “get it it later”. Well, the time is NOW!
You’re finally out with no homework on the weekends, so put on one of those orientation week tees and get started! Make sure you’re donating things that can be donated, and selling your old textbooks. Recycle all the hard work from the classes you passed, and organize the notes from those that you might need later.
This is especially important if you’re planning on making a housing change, which many do after graduation. Think about it like this, what do I want to take with me when I leave, and what am I willing to put in the manual labour to move. Trust me, it works. There was no way I was about to lift 20 lbs of my tween books from 2004, so those went straight to the donation pile.
B) Organize
After years of being busy studying, your university stuff probably isn’t the only thing you’ve been putting off organizing. Try to commit to decluttering everything. From your closet (which I wrote a post on: How to declutter your closet), to you car, you might as well get it all out of the way. It’s easier to do it now while you’re motivated rather than wait until you have to move for your new job and do it in a rush.
C) Sell, Sell, Sell
Of all that stuff that you just decluttered and organized, I’m betting that a lot of it could be sold to someone to use again. There are so many awesome ways to get rid of stuff these days. Obviously the donate, recycle and garbage piles have to stay, but now you have more options.
Try selling your stuff on Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, Ebay, Poshmark (US only). If the item is in relatively good condition, it’s likely that someone else is looking for something similar.
Plus, who doesn’t love getting a few new bills in their pocket?! You can add them to your student loans and be that much closer to being debt free!
3. Set Goals
This is probably one of the harder things to wrap your head around: what to do next.
There are so many opportunities available now that you have a degree, you just have to go out and find them.
Make a list of things you want.
Have a few things for this year, the next 5 years and maybe even the next 10. If you don’t know that far ahead, don’t worry! Just write down things you want out of life, your career, your hobbies. Literally anything. Having it written down will make it easier to visualize it and then make. shit. happen.
You don’t have to have it all together, but even having a plan for tomorrow is setting yourself up better than if you didn’t!
4. Take a BREAK
You just completed one of the biggest achievements in your life, TAKE A BREAK! It’s okay to take a few days/weeks/months to do stuff you want to do and couldn’t while you were in school.
Take a vacation, maybe don’t work for a little. Either way, take some time to do whatever YOU want. This is one of the final times you’ll have off (or could have off) for an extended period, so enjoy it.
When I graduated university, I immediately started traveling and haven’t stopped since. Since that’s the case, I’ve been seriously practicing number 4, but all the rest have taken a backseat. Once I get back in August, there’s going to be a whole lot of 1, 2 and 3 going on!
xx Victoria
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