Tag Archives: Frustration

Dear High School Self…

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I distinctly remember pacing my dad’s home office one afternoon senior year of high school.  I was almost in tears, worried about the future.  At this point, I didn’t even know where I was going to college yet so in retrospect, it was way too early to be thinking about planning out a potential career.  It was probably the stress of applications and senior year talking but I was so potently distraught that it is almost hard to think of the memory now.

I wish I could go back to that panicking 17-year-old and tell her not to worry (not that she would have believed me).  I would tell her that things will work out how they’re supposed to.  The best piece of career advice I could give to myself then would be to take a deep breath because you can’t see what the future holds yet.

I hadn’t yet gotten to college where I would discover, through experiences and my majors, that I wanted to work in entertainment.  You can’t always plan and figure out the grand plan because you simply lack the experiences necessary to make the path clear.

It is so easy to get into a trap of worrying about what you’re going to do after graduation.  When were younger, the idea is impressed upon us that we need to “decide what we want to be when we grow up”.  After listening to many people’s stories, I have found that there really is no ultimate goal of something to be.  Your career path can be as fluid and as nuanced as you are.  People change over time, and their goals will change.  What sounds appealing now may not in a years’ time.  And that’s ok!  Work with the information you’ve got, give it your all, and things will come together like they’re supposed to.

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Managing Deadline Stress

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In the last week I have found myself extremely stressed about upcoming internship deadlines.  This stress comes amidst looming paper deadlines and the stress that comes from the semester hitting its stride.  The endless applications and emails to send out have been especially weighing.  It happens every year but it doesn’t mean it’s any less difficult. Entertainment specifically is stressful because its application process comes late.  With summer rapidly approaching, it’s hard not knowing what your plans are.  Here are a few things I am trying to remember to do as deadlines become more stressful.

Break up larger tasks:

I find that I am most stressed when I think about all I should accomplish in its totality.  That looming to-do list leads to needless anxiety.  It has been helpful to break down the bigger tasks into more manageable parts.  You can only do so much at once.  Accomplishing a specific, small goal towards a larger task gives you a sense of satisfaction.  And during stressful times, it can be a much-needed boost.

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Mix up your to-do’s:

Writing cover letters for hours on end is not only monotonous but can be counterproductive.  I have found that I do my best work on tasks in small bursts, as inspiration strikes.  When I sit down to be “productive” I have a small list of tasks to complete.  As I lose interest in one, I immediately have something else to turn to.  That way I am still productive while giving my brain time to think of the right bullet point on a resume or turn of phrase for a cover letter.  This prevents working time from getting to monotonous.

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Breathe:

The best thing you can do is to take a deep breath.  It will all work out one way or another and while doing something about the future is good, stressing needlessly is counterproductive.

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Although times can get tough, there are manageable things you can do to accomplish all you set your mind to!

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When it feels like you missed out

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It can be devastating to find out that you missed out on an opportunity.  It could be that you found out about the most amazing internship or job opportunity one day after the deadline passed.  It could be that you found out one day before the deadline and despite your best effort to churn out a cover letter, it just doesn’t happen.  Or it could even be that you were having quite the week and a deadline just totally slipped your mind.  I have certainly had all these kinds of experiences and while they happen for one reason or another, they are still unfortunate either way. 

I nearly missed the most amazing opportunity to apply to an internship recently.  A few weeks ago, I was connected to a recruiter from an amazing media company.  This company had the perfect internship for me, all I had to do was reach out to this recruiter to get next steps about the position and to learn more about a company I would love to work at.  But for one reason or another, things got busy and the tasked disappeared from my to-do list.  It was fortunate that I was able to catch my error with a timely reminder about the opportunity but it was certainly a close one. 

Even the best of us sometimes slip up when it comes to the application process, whether for a job or internship.  We have so many balls to juggle from deadlines, to supplements, to letters of recommendation.  The best thing I have found to do when you feel like you have messed up or are cutting it close, is to relax.  I remember feeling panicked when I discovered how close I was to the deadline.  I felt terrible that this amazing opportunity to connect and apply had fell into my lap and I didn’t take immediate advantage of it.  But these feelings of panic and regret were going to help me still do my best to take advantage of the situation.  I made sure to do simple things like remember common courtesy.  I profusely thanked my connection for reminding me of the opportunity.  Without her this never would have happened in the first place so it was only professional to thank her.  I remembered to slow down when looking at my application materials to make sure that I didn’t make any mistakes.  Although I did get my materials in on time and made a fantastic connection, this defiantly applies to when you do actually miss a deadline.  It cant hurt to send an email to see if there is still a possibility to apply for the position after the deadline, provided you are professional and courteous.  Above all remember that one missed deadline is not going to be the end of the world.  There are many opportunities out there, the important thing is not to get discouraged.  My specific situation was a good reminder though.  To not only stay on top of application materials and connections, but also to be gracious and professional, even if inside you feel like you made a mistake.

How Clarifying Your Values Can Help You Keep an Open Mind

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Happy November, everybody! Isn’t it incredible how fast this semester has been moving? Goodness gracious. I honestly can’t even process how quickly the past few months have gone.

If you remember, last week I spoke a bit about the seminars that Books & Such Literary Agency presented to the school. Today I am going to touch on those seminars a bit more, but also tie them into something very important that one of my interviewees told me this summer.

Talia was an American Studies major who graduated in 1989 (nbd, just the year that Taylor Swift was born). While originally she didn’t think she was on the right path after graduation, as she worked for a department store corporation fully aware it was not what she wanted to spend her time doing, she kept an open mind.

“I really feel that the whole approach to my life has been [centered about] what I wanted out of it. And that made me more open.” Her words rang in my mind, but until now I haven’t fully had the chance to explore their meaning. While Talia was not sure exactly where she would end up, she knew what was important to her and what she had to have to be happy. Because she didn’t restrict herself to one set career, she was open to taking unexpected opportunities and finding work in areas she never would have considered.

At the seminars, Janet gave the students a handout entitled “What Values are Most Important to You in a Potential Profession?” The directions instructed them to choose three of the following: Creativity, Financial Security, Fame, Social Justice, Fun, Service to Others, Self-Development, Faith, Self-expression, Influence, Entertain Others, Family-Centric, Quality of Life, Team-Oriented, Opportunity to Persuade Others, Mental Stimulation, Satisfy Intellectual Curiosity, and Expand Understanding of the World/Society.

Let me tell you a secret: I could not do this exercise. The bolded words above are the ones I narrowed down to, but honestly other than that…well I refused to eliminate one. And you should have seen how long it took me to get it down to four. Agh.

However, this exercise reminded me of Talia’s words. She kept her priorities in line and she was able to make a path for herself based off her loose definition of future. Now, I don’t know what exactly those priorities were, but in the end it paid off. She ended up starting her own company and she has been loving it.

I have been going back and forth so much lately about what I want to do, stressing about the many different career paths I am starting to fall in love with. Even more, I am stressing that I won’t end up on any of my desired paths. But, honestly, I think I need to change from here on out the way I think about my future. No longer will I worry about what the career title is, rather what the job entails. If it provides me financial security, self-development, self-expression, and satisfies my intellectual curiosity…well, I will make sure to give it a chance. Yes, I love books and want to be absorbed in their world 24/7, but that doesn’t mean if I don’t end up there right away I won’t get there someday. For now I will just focus on my priorities and what I want to get out of my life.
What do you think? Is it better to have a set career path in mind, or are you willing to be open to a job you never would have thought about taking as long as it satisfies all your priorities? Also, what values from the list are most important to you?

The Benefit of (the Many) College Expectations

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Hi everyone! I wanted to start today’s post by thanking not only CP&R for the incredible Life After Scripps week, but also all of you that attended the events. I know that I was so pleased with the turn out at the Create Your Own Adventure seminar, and I hope that for those of you who attended, you learned something new and beneficial! Just a reminder that October 22nd and 23rd are the dates of the next two seminars. While the one last week was more informational, these next two are very interactive and fun!

I also really want to encourage you all to take advantage of the incredible opportunities Scripps provides. With the creation of every event, club, speaker, class, etc. comes the intent to benefit the student in some way. One of the women I interviewed, Clara, spoke to this point. While she was a busy student, she made sure to take advantage of all the opportunities she could, whether it was an extra class, joining a club, or going to a speaker event. The amount of activities she put on her plate “prepared me when I went to get my masters, because I was on it…I went into a very intense program, but I was actually prepared for the workload itself.”

Clara now teaches at a high school. However, not only does she teach English, she also is the dance teacher, a spin class teacher, one of the main program coordinators for the school, and is the faculty member that always volunteers to take on that extra assignment. While some people may look at her like she’s crazy, this is nothing new for her. Taking on all these tasks not only gives her something to do, but also provides more income.

I know for me that this semester I have been quite a bit overwhelmed with the amount I put on myself. Not only am I a blogger for Beyond the Elms, but also I still am maintaining my internship, I am a BOT student representative, the music director of Ninth Street Hooligans, and I am taking five academic classes. I also know I chose to do all of these activities for a reason: I wanted to blog for Beyond the Elms because I wanted more writing experience. I knew I wanted an internship this summer and I knew that the one I ended up with was going to be an incredible experience, even if it did go into the school year. I really care for Scripps and wanted to be more involved in its potential to grow, so BOT immediately caught my eye. And as for the class load…I wanted to finish all my GEs this year and also wanted to get a head start on my major.

I also know that I have learned a lot of skills from taking on this many activities that will benefit me later, whether it be I decide to go to graduate school or look for a career. I am learning how to make a (very intense) schedule and stick to it in order to get what I need to do done. I am also learning how to figure out what my personal priorities are and how sometimes making tough decisions is necessary. For example, until recently I was a member of the Chamber Choir. However, because of the amount of work I have taken on, I knew it was necessary for me to drop. I have been singing in choir since I was four years old, so this was not an easy decision. Honestly, I still am a little bit upset with myself, but I know I made the right decision.

As college students, a lot is expected of us. We are supposed to take classes, stay healthy, make friends, all while keeping in mind where we want to be after our four years at Scripps. However, I don’t think any of us should take this for granted. While it may seem overwhelming and stressful, we are learning to challenge ourselves in so many different ways. With every new assignment, we learn to balance and schedule—two very important skills that will go a long way no matter where you end up after Scripps.

Have any of you ever felt overwhelmed by what college expectations are placed on you? If yes, how did you deal with that stress? Have you ever thought about whether these expectations have benefited you?