24 important things to know before you’re 24
Want to know a secret? I'm turning 24. Yeah, it doesn't seem very old to some...but to others I am practically a Grandma in the college world. On the 10th of August is my birthday. And it means that today is the perfect day for some serious reflecting. So here I go. Here’s my list of 24 important things to know before you’re 24:
1. Sleep is underrated
The whole “you can sleep when you’re dead” mentality is going to lose a lot of its appeal. Seriously, sleeping has become one of my favorite hobbies. I think as we get older, our ability to be productive without sleep diminishes greatly. Don’t feel lame. It’s okay. Sleep is cool.
2. Coffee/Tea (or whatever it is that motivates you in the morning) is everything
Maybe coffee or tea won’t be as important to you as it is to me, but it’s good to have something to wake you up in the morning. Whether that’s a few sun salutations or an upbeat song to listen to while getting ready, having something that will get you out of bed and ready to face the day is important. (highly recommend passion tango tea)
3. Free / unlimited access to your school’s gym is beautiful
Here’s a big bummer: The days of heading to the football field on Friday and ordering pizza are over. Now? My body is like, “Haha SURPRISE! Those calories are gonna stick! You want a beer? Muahahahaha better buy a pant size larger.”
So though it can be hard to get to the gym (especially on those rainy days when all you want to do is curl up in a big blanket and watch Greys. I encourage you to take advantage of your school’s gym. Trust me. Unless you find some high-paying job right out of college, you probably won’t be shopping at Whole Foods. That means a lot of frozen pizza and Chinese takeout. And gym memberships in the real world are ridiculously expensive.
4. There are scholarships out there for you.
Loans really hurt the team. Especially when you’re trying to pay rent. So here’s a secret that can help: Don’t think that there are only scholarships out there for “A” students who also play the xylophone and spend their weekends knitting mittens for orphan kittens (not that those students don’t deserve scholarships). They totally do! But there are also a lot of great organizations that want to help many different kinds of students.
5. Internships are for everyone.
I don’t care whether you’re at Harvard studying Business or at Hogwarts studying Potions, you can and should find an internship. Employers want students who have the critical thinking college nurtures as well as “real” experience. Trust me, you do not want to fall into that awful but all too common Catch-22: you need experience to get a job but can’t get a job without experience.
6. Roommates are not your parents.
You may live with these people, but that does not make them your parents. They are not biologically locked into the unconditional love contract. They will not forgive you if you “borrow” their toothbrush. They are not there to pick up after you. They may not want to hear every detail of the dream you had last night in which you married Carrot Top or Captain America.
It’s important to remember that not everyone has had the same upbringing. Living habits are a complicated matter. I’ve seen friendships torn apart when two people try to live together. So be careful. Think before choosing to live with a friend.
7. You’re gonna want lots of skills.
Nanchaku skills, bow-hunting skills, computer hacking skills… Okay so maybe not those exact skills (though it’s pretty fetch if you do have them). {Jen, stop trying to make fetch happen} What I’m saying is that you should try to be as well-rounded as possible. If you’re an English major, learn some basic HTML. If you’re a computer science major, take a couple philosophy courses. It’ll help you in the long run. Not only will you be able to relate and converse with a variety of different people, but it will also look good to employers.
8. EVERYTHING costs money…
This is one of the most painful things to learn. EVERYTHING costs money. Rent. Groceries. Toilet paper! Heat. Toothpaste. Going out costs money too. A night on the town with friends is fun and sometimes a necessity after a hard day of work, but those drinks and mozzarella sticks start to add up, so be careful!
Somewhere between your first year of college and your 24th birthday you should start creating a budget for yourself. Otherwise your rent will be due, your fridge will be empty, and all you’ll have to show for yourself are a couple of photos on your phone of you on the bar of the local pub…
9. Facebook is forever
Okay so maybe not Facebook, but I’m talking about social media in general. Once you put it out there you can’t take it back. The problem with that is as you get older more and more grown-ups are going to want to friend you or follow you; grown-ups that will not be pleased to see that you stayed up three nights in a row and skipped class on Monday because of it.
THEN you have to deal with what comes after college. We’re all pretty good at stalking and now companies are, too. They will be checking up on you when you apply. If they see that status you posted sophomore year: “Ugh… haven’t slept in 72 hours. Looks like class ain’t happening >_<”, they might think you’d pull the same stunt with work. That’s not good. Make sure you’re taking the appropriate precautions on these networks and using them to your advantage.
10. Start the job search before you graduate
Trust me, after graduation, reality is going to hit like a ton of bricks. I haven't even graduated yet, but I have seen this happen to so many people. You’ve spent your whole life being a student. All of a sudden everyone’s like, “Studying? You may have been doing that for the past 20 years but you AREN’T anymore. It’s time to work! GET A JOB!” I can tell you that learning how to be a job-seeker is complicated and it’s not something you can “cram” for. There are no Sparknotes for the real life.
11. There’s a career services office
Yep. Wright State actually has a place where you can learn about internship opportunities, practice interviewing, and get information about the job search in general. You’re going to be job hunting after you graduate. It’s the smart decision to take advantage of as many available resources as possible.
12. Your parents are actually kind of cool
The thing about your parents is that they actually care about your day. When they ask about your life it’s not like when other people greet you with, “How are you?” They genuinely care that you ate pretty well yesterday and that you saw a mark on the sidewalk that looked like your dog. You’re not going to find many people who care about you like that.
13. A night playing Cards Against Humanity is way more fun than getting really drunk at a bar
Yes, painting the town red can be fun BUT it gets exhausting after a while and you don’t usually make any real connections with people at a bar. Play a game like Cards Against Humanity and you'll make lifelong friends. (it all started with a really cool hat) You’ll get to know people a lot better, spend a lot less money, and get to bed at a reasonable hour (ahem point #1).
14. Pizza is the only food that truly matters
Pizza brings everyone together. Who doesn’t like pizza? You can go out for pizza, get it delivered, buy it frozen, or make it from scratch. However you choose to eat it, it’s fairly inexpensive, delicious, and basically a universally good call. Either that or Chinese food.
15. Questions help you
I actually have a lot of trouble with this one. Asking questions can be scary and make you feel vulnerable. I for one hate looking like I don’t know what I’m doing, but over the years I have learned that it’s far better to ask than guess. Asking never makes you look bad—just be sure to pay attention when you’re being given instructions. Write them down. It does not look good to ask the same questions over and over again.
16. There are jobs in places other than where you grew up or went to college
After graduating from college it can seem like you have to either return to your hometown or continue living where your university is. This is false. This is a brand-new point in your life! You don’t have to do anything.
Explore your options. This is really hard for me to grasp, but I'm totally working on it.
17. Start a blog
Not only is blogging a great way for you to keep track of things you find interesting, but it’s also a fantastic way to create a personal brand.
Employers love seeing that you know what you’re talking about. Blogging about your industry shows you are truly invested in that field. But be forewarned—writing blog posts is not something to be done in a flurry. Your blog (as with everything online) will become a reflection of you.
18. The chores don’t stop
The annoying thing is that your parents had a reason behind asking you to clean up after yourself. Ends up, if you don’t pick up your dirty clothes from the floor, they stay on the floor. If you don’t take out the trash, it starts to smell really, really bad. So if you don’t want to wade through piles of dirty clothes to get to your bed or have the aroma of rotting food wafting through your apartment (Febreze does not really make it disappear) then you’ll do those chores.
19. It’s cool to know about “grown-up” stuff (like the news)
Sure. You’ll (sadly) probably still be up-to-date on what’s happening with the Kardashians, but you’re also going to start to develop an interest in what you once thought of as “grown-up” stuff. I’m talking about the news. Whether you’re following the New York Times on Twitter or reading a real newspaper with your first cup of tea, you’re going to find that people actually want to talk about what’s going on in the world.
20. There’s such a thing as an informational interview and you should make it part of your job-search strategy
I am perhaps the most indecisive person in the world. Just kidding. I'm only indecisive sometimes. Like, how am I supposed to decide what I want to do for the rest of my life? Informational interviews are a fantastic way to get a look into an industry without actually having to commit to it. You can hear about real experiences from different people, get a better understanding of what it’s like in that industry, and network all at the same time.
21. You’re not going to wake up one day and feel like you’re a grown-up
Guess what? There’s never going to be an ‘aha!’ moment when you suddenly feel like an adult. You’re getting older and I suppose you’re doing more “grown-up” things like living on your own, paying for your bills, etc. but trust me, you’re still going to feel like a kid.
I don’t know anyone who has it all together. There may be a few friends who know what they want, but most are still exploring their options. There is definitely no one who is completely secure in their future. We all just keep living and seeing where we end up.
22. Don’t take yourself too seriously
Seriously though… don’t take yourself too seriously. No one is perfect (I mean Angelina Jolie once carried a vial of blood around her neck…) If you try to be perfect all the time you’re just going to drive yourself crazy and miss out on a lot of great moments.
There are going to be moments in your life when you aren’t at your best. Whether that’s walking around with a piece of lettuce stuck to your teeth or interrupting your interviewer...you’re going to have to move on. Yes, it sucks and you should learn from your mistakes aka bring a compact mirror and remember NOT to talk over your interviewer the next time, but you also can’t let it stop you from ever eating salad again or going to another interview. Good thing I personally don't like lettuce.
23. Say thank you
Always voice your thank yous. Never assume people know you appreciate them. ALWAYS tell them. Whether that’s saying it to the professor who helped you understand material for class or writing a thank you to your interviewer, always express your gratitude in a tangible way.
24. Have fun
It can be so easy to get bogged down in things that are going wrong. Just the other day I could feel myself getting more and more annoyed as the morning went on. Time goes by way too fast to be upset (not to mention the worry wrinkles that start to show up). Try to have fun as much as possible. Enjoy your life.
Those are just 24 things that I think are important. There are so many other lessons I’ve learned over the years. I think maybe the most important lesson to learn is that you should always keep learning. Keep an open mind. There’s never a point in time when you should stop and think, “I know it all!” Other than that, just keep swimming.
1. Sleep is underrated
The whole “you can sleep when you’re dead” mentality is going to lose a lot of its appeal. Seriously, sleeping has become one of my favorite hobbies. I think as we get older, our ability to be productive without sleep diminishes greatly. Don’t feel lame. It’s okay. Sleep is cool.
2. Coffee/Tea (or whatever it is that motivates you in the morning) is everything
Maybe coffee or tea won’t be as important to you as it is to me, but it’s good to have something to wake you up in the morning. Whether that’s a few sun salutations or an upbeat song to listen to while getting ready, having something that will get you out of bed and ready to face the day is important. (highly recommend passion tango tea)
3. Free / unlimited access to your school’s gym is beautiful
Here’s a big bummer: The days of heading to the football field on Friday and ordering pizza are over. Now? My body is like, “Haha SURPRISE! Those calories are gonna stick! You want a beer? Muahahahaha better buy a pant size larger.”
So though it can be hard to get to the gym (especially on those rainy days when all you want to do is curl up in a big blanket and watch Greys. I encourage you to take advantage of your school’s gym. Trust me. Unless you find some high-paying job right out of college, you probably won’t be shopping at Whole Foods. That means a lot of frozen pizza and Chinese takeout. And gym memberships in the real world are ridiculously expensive.
4. There are scholarships out there for you.
Loans really hurt the team. Especially when you’re trying to pay rent. So here’s a secret that can help: Don’t think that there are only scholarships out there for “A” students who also play the xylophone and spend their weekends knitting mittens for orphan kittens (not that those students don’t deserve scholarships). They totally do! But there are also a lot of great organizations that want to help many different kinds of students.
5. Internships are for everyone.
I don’t care whether you’re at Harvard studying Business or at Hogwarts studying Potions, you can and should find an internship. Employers want students who have the critical thinking college nurtures as well as “real” experience. Trust me, you do not want to fall into that awful but all too common Catch-22: you need experience to get a job but can’t get a job without experience.
6. Roommates are not your parents.
You may live with these people, but that does not make them your parents. They are not biologically locked into the unconditional love contract. They will not forgive you if you “borrow” their toothbrush. They are not there to pick up after you. They may not want to hear every detail of the dream you had last night in which you married Carrot Top or Captain America.
It’s important to remember that not everyone has had the same upbringing. Living habits are a complicated matter. I’ve seen friendships torn apart when two people try to live together. So be careful. Think before choosing to live with a friend.
7. You’re gonna want lots of skills.
Nanchaku skills, bow-hunting skills, computer hacking skills… Okay so maybe not those exact skills (though it’s pretty fetch if you do have them). {Jen, stop trying to make fetch happen} What I’m saying is that you should try to be as well-rounded as possible. If you’re an English major, learn some basic HTML. If you’re a computer science major, take a couple philosophy courses. It’ll help you in the long run. Not only will you be able to relate and converse with a variety of different people, but it will also look good to employers.
8. EVERYTHING costs money…
This is one of the most painful things to learn. EVERYTHING costs money. Rent. Groceries. Toilet paper! Heat. Toothpaste. Going out costs money too. A night on the town with friends is fun and sometimes a necessity after a hard day of work, but those drinks and mozzarella sticks start to add up, so be careful!
Somewhere between your first year of college and your 24th birthday you should start creating a budget for yourself. Otherwise your rent will be due, your fridge will be empty, and all you’ll have to show for yourself are a couple of photos on your phone of you on the bar of the local pub…
9. Facebook is forever
Okay so maybe not Facebook, but I’m talking about social media in general. Once you put it out there you can’t take it back. The problem with that is as you get older more and more grown-ups are going to want to friend you or follow you; grown-ups that will not be pleased to see that you stayed up three nights in a row and skipped class on Monday because of it.
THEN you have to deal with what comes after college. We’re all pretty good at stalking and now companies are, too. They will be checking up on you when you apply. If they see that status you posted sophomore year: “Ugh… haven’t slept in 72 hours. Looks like class ain’t happening >_<”, they might think you’d pull the same stunt with work. That’s not good. Make sure you’re taking the appropriate precautions on these networks and using them to your advantage.
10. Start the job search before you graduate
Trust me, after graduation, reality is going to hit like a ton of bricks. I haven't even graduated yet, but I have seen this happen to so many people. You’ve spent your whole life being a student. All of a sudden everyone’s like, “Studying? You may have been doing that for the past 20 years but you AREN’T anymore. It’s time to work! GET A JOB!” I can tell you that learning how to be a job-seeker is complicated and it’s not something you can “cram” for. There are no Sparknotes for the real life.
11. There’s a career services office
Yep. Wright State actually has a place where you can learn about internship opportunities, practice interviewing, and get information about the job search in general. You’re going to be job hunting after you graduate. It’s the smart decision to take advantage of as many available resources as possible.
12. Your parents are actually kind of cool
The thing about your parents is that they actually care about your day. When they ask about your life it’s not like when other people greet you with, “How are you?” They genuinely care that you ate pretty well yesterday and that you saw a mark on the sidewalk that looked like your dog. You’re not going to find many people who care about you like that.
13. A night playing Cards Against Humanity is way more fun than getting really drunk at a bar
Yes, painting the town red can be fun BUT it gets exhausting after a while and you don’t usually make any real connections with people at a bar. Play a game like Cards Against Humanity and you'll make lifelong friends. (it all started with a really cool hat) You’ll get to know people a lot better, spend a lot less money, and get to bed at a reasonable hour (ahem point #1).
14. Pizza is the only food that truly matters
Pizza brings everyone together. Who doesn’t like pizza? You can go out for pizza, get it delivered, buy it frozen, or make it from scratch. However you choose to eat it, it’s fairly inexpensive, delicious, and basically a universally good call. Either that or Chinese food.
15. Questions help you
I actually have a lot of trouble with this one. Asking questions can be scary and make you feel vulnerable. I for one hate looking like I don’t know what I’m doing, but over the years I have learned that it’s far better to ask than guess. Asking never makes you look bad—just be sure to pay attention when you’re being given instructions. Write them down. It does not look good to ask the same questions over and over again.
16. There are jobs in places other than where you grew up or went to college
After graduating from college it can seem like you have to either return to your hometown or continue living where your university is. This is false. This is a brand-new point in your life! You don’t have to do anything.
Explore your options. This is really hard for me to grasp, but I'm totally working on it.
17. Start a blog
Not only is blogging a great way for you to keep track of things you find interesting, but it’s also a fantastic way to create a personal brand.
Employers love seeing that you know what you’re talking about. Blogging about your industry shows you are truly invested in that field. But be forewarned—writing blog posts is not something to be done in a flurry. Your blog (as with everything online) will become a reflection of you.
18. The chores don’t stop
The annoying thing is that your parents had a reason behind asking you to clean up after yourself. Ends up, if you don’t pick up your dirty clothes from the floor, they stay on the floor. If you don’t take out the trash, it starts to smell really, really bad. So if you don’t want to wade through piles of dirty clothes to get to your bed or have the aroma of rotting food wafting through your apartment (Febreze does not really make it disappear) then you’ll do those chores.
19. It’s cool to know about “grown-up” stuff (like the news)
Sure. You’ll (sadly) probably still be up-to-date on what’s happening with the Kardashians, but you’re also going to start to develop an interest in what you once thought of as “grown-up” stuff. I’m talking about the news. Whether you’re following the New York Times on Twitter or reading a real newspaper with your first cup of tea, you’re going to find that people actually want to talk about what’s going on in the world.
20. There’s such a thing as an informational interview and you should make it part of your job-search strategy
I am perhaps the most indecisive person in the world. Just kidding. I'm only indecisive sometimes. Like, how am I supposed to decide what I want to do for the rest of my life? Informational interviews are a fantastic way to get a look into an industry without actually having to commit to it. You can hear about real experiences from different people, get a better understanding of what it’s like in that industry, and network all at the same time.
21. You’re not going to wake up one day and feel like you’re a grown-up
Guess what? There’s never going to be an ‘aha!’ moment when you suddenly feel like an adult. You’re getting older and I suppose you’re doing more “grown-up” things like living on your own, paying for your bills, etc. but trust me, you’re still going to feel like a kid.
I don’t know anyone who has it all together. There may be a few friends who know what they want, but most are still exploring their options. There is definitely no one who is completely secure in their future. We all just keep living and seeing where we end up.
22. Don’t take yourself too seriously
Seriously though… don’t take yourself too seriously. No one is perfect (I mean Angelina Jolie once carried a vial of blood around her neck…) If you try to be perfect all the time you’re just going to drive yourself crazy and miss out on a lot of great moments.
There are going to be moments in your life when you aren’t at your best. Whether that’s walking around with a piece of lettuce stuck to your teeth or interrupting your interviewer...you’re going to have to move on. Yes, it sucks and you should learn from your mistakes aka bring a compact mirror and remember NOT to talk over your interviewer the next time, but you also can’t let it stop you from ever eating salad again or going to another interview. Good thing I personally don't like lettuce.
23. Say thank you
Always voice your thank yous. Never assume people know you appreciate them. ALWAYS tell them. Whether that’s saying it to the professor who helped you understand material for class or writing a thank you to your interviewer, always express your gratitude in a tangible way.
24. Have fun
It can be so easy to get bogged down in things that are going wrong. Just the other day I could feel myself getting more and more annoyed as the morning went on. Time goes by way too fast to be upset (not to mention the worry wrinkles that start to show up). Try to have fun as much as possible. Enjoy your life.
Those are just 24 things that I think are important. There are so many other lessons I’ve learned over the years. I think maybe the most important lesson to learn is that you should always keep learning. Keep an open mind. There’s never a point in time when you should stop and think, “I know it all!” Other than that, just keep swimming.
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