You Just Graduated... Now What!?

Congratulations, Graduates of 2023! ??

Well done on earning your degree and achieving a huge milestone.

~1% of the population has a doctoral degree, and you just joined the club.

I hope you're immensely proud of your accomplishment and telling the world all about it!

Since you have clearly proven that you are a smart cookie and able to do hard things, I want to share 7 things you can do to make that degree work for you. Have the brilliant, fulfilling career you have put in so much work to get.

1- You've Only Begun. Get Excited

Yes, you just achieved a huge goal, but don’t feel like you’re done. Your formal education may have ended, but your real-world education is just beginning. Get excited, because this is the really fun part of learning.

Think you can stop reading books, stop learning, stop trying so hard? No way! Keep up that habit. If you quickly relax into the comfort of that 9-5 job with a sweet 6-figure salary then golden handcuffs.....that comfort will suffocate your unique growth and keep you living far below your potential.

While you are in the habit of learning already keep learning.

Stay hungry!

2- Use LinkedIn!

Oh, please use LinkedIn for a few reasons, including:

• to connect with people others have told you are unreachable
• to find your interests
• to take part in interesting conversations & practice sharing your voice
• to surround yourself with people who support you
• to open your worldview and see what is possible out there

This free tool will open more doors for you than any resume ever possibly could.

It's really not what you know, but who.

Make yourself visible and really use this platform to build your personal brand instead of just aimlessly scrolling to see your classmate's latest promotion.

3- Make LinkedIn your landing page

Good thing you are using LinkedIn ! Now, make this platform really work for you by making your LinkedIn profile the landing page for your brand. Make yourself stand out and reflect your unique interests.

Add polishing touches like:

• Putting up a decent profile picture
• Updating your banner to reflect your favorite topics
• Write a compelling & interesting "About Me" section

These are tiny moves that help you stand out and make it easy for people to jump into your world and reach out to you. This is valuable real estate! Take an hour or two to brush it up to show your best, professional, and YOU side to the world.

*Oh, and don't let it be overly stuffy or professional. Tell us about YOU, not a mind-numbing CV listing every lofty academic achievement known to man*

4- Start a side hustle!!

I was one of the best employees at my old company. Oh, how I wished I had started building something on the side back then.

Sure, that company paid me for my knowledge & skills.

It turns out the open market paid me much, much, much more.

New grads, please start a simple side hustle as soon as possible.

Especially one that:

• Is free or costs little to run
• Is what you are genuinely interested in

You just spent $250K+ investing in your future with that fancy degree. Now keep investing in yourself to make that degree actually work for you. Times are changing quickly and those that can adapt and prove themselves invaluable in the world with survive.

Sure, enjoy your day job for the safety net. But don't put all your eggs in that basket, especially from Day 1.

The longer you wait the harder it is to start something new (especially if you get really comfortable with your sweet salary). I assure you, as a new grad you are enough. You don't need more experience.

Starting today will give you the experience you crave.

5- Do what your peers are unwilling to do

What most whitecoat grads do when they graduate:

• Assume graduation is the finish line
• Throw away your books
• Get the job
• Relax
• Just enjoying clocking in and out. You made it to success. Whew, now just climb that corporate ladder for a few decades, and you are all set!

You are different.

• Graduation is the starting line
• Get the job, but know that the job doesn't have your best interest in mind
• Build a fun side hustle
• Get energized knowing you are building a future stronger than only relying on a single W-2 job employment
• Have fun creating and exploring how you were meant to influence the world
• Read, read, read, read, read! Sure, you can throw out textbooks, but you're staying hungry to learn anything even remotely interesting to you.

You're going to act differently from your peers. You're going to create, explore, and use the tools of technology to help you achieve the changes you want to make in the world faster. You're not scared of AI. You're learning how it works so you can use it to make you better. You're not scared to share your voice online every day. You know that when you do, you'll attract people who think similarly to you and grow your voice.

Doing what your peers don't dare to do will make all the difference long term. They want comfort and security now. You want it long-term and are willing to work differently now to make that happen.

It's not the smartest people who succeed, but those who consistently create.

6- Build your own strong network

One of the best life hacks is to surround yourself with people who are where you want to be. With the internet, this is so easy to do. You can connect with anyone in the world with just a few clicks.

Your network really is your net worth. So start now as a brand new grad seeking out people who are like-minded.

You want people in your life who:

• Aren't threatened when you succeed
• Won't let you stay comfortable
• Will hold you accountable to your dreams
• Who just don't drag you down

You can't pick your colleagues at work, but you can intentionally surround yourself with the right kind of people who will get to where you want to go. So get out of your comfort zone and introduce yourself online. Send a DM saying hello or share a thoughtful comment on someone's post you liked. It isn't hard. The best friends I've found were people I met here on LinkedIn. I've built a really strong network of close friends who I know have my back and whom I can honestly share my wins and my failures with. That support is priceless.

Start now building your own.

7- Live like a college student

Ah, you've been living like a poor college student for all these years. You probably feel ready to start cashing those sweet, sweet new paychecks. You've earned this, right!?

You certainly have, but while you are in the habit of living like a college student, I'd stick to living like a college student for a few years. Increase your spending by only about 10-20 %/year.

"Why, Jamie, why!?"

"Now I'm making 6 figures and I can finally buy what I deserve"

Sure you can.

But there is joyous freedom in having financial flexibility.

If you go to the bank and get the biggest house that you qualify for, and then add in a nice ride (or two) and all the vacations that you 'can afford' then it is really easy and quick to get trapped into living paycheck-to-paycheck. I saw it all the time at my old job. I worked with many PharmD's who were more broke than their pharmacy techs who were still in college.

It's not about how much you earn, but what you do with that money.

By living like a college student, you can:

• See how it feels to start paying back those student loans and fold them into your monthly budget
• Save a 6+ month financial reserve
• Not instantly trap yourself in high cost of living expenses right outta the gate

You just graduated!

Celebrate!

Enjoy that salary, and flex that delayed gratitude muscle a little longer. Now 13 years post-graduation I know that no house or car feels as good as one paid off in full.

Trying to impress other people with your worldly possessions doesn't work. There is always someone who has more. Give yourself a head start to #adulting by living more simply that your classmates, and by so doing, giving yourself long-term a smart financial boost.

Well, there you have it.

The world is your oyster.

Go get 'em tiger!

Jamie

PS- Whenever you're ready, there are 2 additional ways I can help you now:

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