Pre-Graduation Pep Talk
Dear Friends, Colleagues and soon to be Grads,
This time in our lives is so full. Full of papers, assignments, capstones, searching for jobs or internships; everything and anything that comes with the college chapter coming to a close. All of these things are stressful and exciting, but sometimes when it rains it pours - so I want to take this time to tell you, personally, that you’ve got this. You’re going to move past the anxiety of the unknown and you’re going to nail it because that is the kind of people we are.
As we all know, saying it is much easier than doing it, so here are some tips to keep your head above water on our race to April and beyond!
Kick procrastination: We might be a few weeks into the semester, but it is not too late to get a jump start on the rest of your assignments. I’m sure you wrote down the due dates you found in your long-forgotten syllabus, it’s time to actually look at them. Jot down an outline or get a chunk of the secondary research you need for your campaign out of the way. I promise Netflix will be waiting for you when you’re done.
Talk to your profs: They have all been in this spot, bets are they remember what it feels like. Don’t be afraid to stop into their office hours and have a heart to heart about what you are feeling. They have great advice and more times than not they will be able to calm some of your more outlandish fears.
Don’t be afraid of the red ink: Most people are taking their upper-level classes this semester and that includes a lot of writing. It’s important to remember that we still don’t know it all. Your profs are going to mark up your research, press releases, and copy to the best of their ability because that is how we are going to learn. Don’t be afraid to mess up, you still have time to improve. Fail forward, take their suggestions to heart and bring them with you into your career.
Make time for you: If you are anything like me it can feel like, between jobs and school, the walls are caving in. My favorite way to get away from that feeling is to spend time with my friends. “I don’t have time” is my most used phrase, and that simply can’t be the case. You need the release of doing the things that make you happy to be successful. Whether that be going downtown and spending 20 minutes in line to grab your favorite coffee or planning a weekly “me” night, you have to make the time.
Through it all, you can’t completely escape the stress. Moving on is overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be scary. Lean on your network, drink lots of water, do your homework, and trust yourself. You are going to make it to the college finish line and when we walk across the stage in April, I will be thrilled to be there with you.
All the Best,
Sam
About Sam:
Samantha Brigham is a senior at Grand Valley State University finishing dual degrees in vocal performance and advertising and public relations with an emphasis in PR. She is currently the Assistant of Publicity and Recruitment for GVSU’s Music, Theatre, and Dance Department, an Account Executive for GrandPR, and Bartends downtown! Sam is the President of Alpha Psi Omega, a proud member of GVPRSSA and in her free time likes to drink unnecessarily over priced coffee or work on her pool game.