I’ve been in the workforce for a while now (I know this because I can no longer sleep past 8 on weekends, a sign that my body is on a real-person schedule). Long gone are the days of opting out of my responsibilities in favor of nursing a hangover and staying out late on weeknights. Instead, I am in bed by 10pm and hunched over a desk for 10 hours a day no matter how crappy I’m feeling.

Besides the paychecks I’ve been depositing for the past 3 years, I’ve taken away quite a few things from my time on the job. Namely, a few very important lessons (learned the hard way) of what is and is not acceptable in a professional environment.

You starting a new job soon? Keep these few things in mind: Read More »

The only thing more stressful than graduating from college is finding that first apartment after graduation. I remember my first apartment hunt like it was yesterday. There was a lot of running, a lot of crying and a sh*t ton of begging my parents for money so I could afford to live in something that had closets and wasn’t a closet. After an emotionally draining 2 weeks of hunting, I finally found something.

And had to pay some dude $2,000 for it because he happened to unlock it for me when I went to see it.

My apartment was great… on the surface. In fact, it wasn’t until I moved in that I realized all the questions I neglected to ask. (Namely, “Does the family downstairs cook with road kill daily?”) Questions that were vital to truly finding the right apartment for my life. So, here are a few pointers for you, recent grads. The rules aren’t the same in every city, but I guarantee you will benefit from what I have to share. Read More »

When you are in college it’s almost as if you have to try not to make friends. You are constantly surrounded by people and put into situations (group projects, student groups, beer pong tournaments) where forming new friendships is as easy as finding Milwaukee’s Best at a frat party; get their name, work with them a bit, then go home and Facebook them later.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for life in the real world.

Not only are you no longer on a campus surrounded by 400-5,000 people just like you, but the situations that present themselves in college aren’t available after you graduate. At least not as easily. And, no, it’s not going to be like Friends where you live in some giant and totally cool apartment and have hot, funny, and really awesome dudes living across the hall. Not even close.

You can’t walk up to some random girl at the bar and ask for her number (really, really creepy), so how the hell do you make new friends!?

Well, first, you need to realize things won’t come as easily and be ready to put in a little work. Once you’ve mentally prepared, it’s time to put forth some effort: Read More »

After the novelty of college graduation (and all the great gifts that came with it) wore off, I spent a year crying myself to sleep. And I’m not exaggerating. While being done with school after 16 years was pretty liberating, not knowing what was coming next scared the sh*t out of me. And the fact that no one ever warned me how difficult being an adult would be made things a whole lot harder.

I went through a lot that first year – looking for a job, moving to a new city, ending a long relationship, and learning how to care for myself, to name a few – all by myself and now feel that I have the experience and knowledge to advise others on the transition. Because it’s a hard one and every college grad should know that they are not alone. Come back every week for another nugget of information to help you survive in the big, bad world.

My commencement speaker, like most commencement speakers, spent 25 minutes telling my graduating class about the endless possibilities in the real world. He spoke of our bright futures, giving back, and making the world a better place.  The speech was inspiring, but now that I’m on the other side of the cap and gown, I wish he had gone in another direction.

Perhaps he could have taken a more realistic approach and warned us of how hard that first year after college was going to be. And that it was OK to be really, really unhappy.

When you’re a college senior, life after college seems like a glamorous world filled with an awesome new job, an awesome new city, and a bright, successful future. You see all those people who graduated before you living it up and enjoying their new place in the real world.

The reality, though, isn’t quite so bright and cheery. The truth: that first year out of college isn’t always so easy. In fact, it’s pretty sh*tty. Read More »

As the semester comes to a close, one thing that’s on my mind (and the minds of most everyone I know) besides finals and start-of-summer parties is getting a job.

Whether it’s a summer job, internship, or, if you’re graduating like I am, an entry-level position into a career, finding a job is a top priority.  However, we all know that isn’t as easy as we’d like it to be.  Competition for jobs is higher than ever with the tough job market we’re in, which is why you have to stand out in the sea off all the other job/internship applicants out there.

But before you purchase some sort of ridiculous costume or do the dirty with your interviewer in attempts to stick out in his or her mind, try a few of these more professional ideas:

1.  Network, network, network – You’ve heard it before, and I’m telling you again: networking is one of the most important things you can do when it comes to helping you get a job.  Think you don’t have connections?  Think again.  Reach out to everyone you know–professors, friends, coworkers, your parents–you never know who has info on great job openings. There are also tons of online groups catered to all sorts of fields that set up networking events in cities across the country. Sign up and go to these; you will meet tons of people in your field that can help you out down the road.

2. Utilize your school’s career center – Sometimes universities get job listings that don’t go into public listings.  You may not find anything the first time, but keep checking, because new jobs open up all the time.  Plus, your career center can offer more than just job listings.  Depending on your university, you can get career counseling, have your resume checked, and even do mock interviews. Read More »