The Art of Being Twenty-Something

Diploma in hand you have launched into the “real world.”  Maybe you are freshly immersed in your first job.  Maybe you are living at home, looking for the employment opportunity that feels right.  Perhaps you are in a new city, trying to figure it all out.  Maybe you have decided to opt out of a serious profession altogether, and you are taking some time to figure out what’s next.  Maybe you don’t have that college diploma, and you don’t want it anyway!  No matter the circumstance, if you are twenty-something years old, chances are - it isn’t easy.   Being an “adult,” it turns out, is quite hard.

So how do you sort it all out?  Before you can face the responsibilities, choices, opportunities and expectations of the real world, it is essential to get clear on what matters most to YOU.  Not, what is your “passion,” but rather, what are your values?  What kind of person do you want to be in life?  At the end of the day, how do you want to be remembered?  It may feel counterintuitive in your 20’s, to be thinking about your legacy, but that type of big picture thinking is exactly the way to get focused and grounded on what matters most.  And then?  Point your arrow in that direction and take a step.  Period.  No certainty where the step will lead, but every move, every reach-out, every connection, every conversation, every new experience - it can and will lead you to the next thing if you stay curious and focused on your values.

Don’t be afraid to experiment.  Right now, in your twenties, you are gathering information and collecting new experiences, professionally and personally.  And that is exactly what you are supposed to be doing.