I just wrapped up a huge ad campaign for the National Student Advertising Competition that was inspired by insights surrounding the whole 'Quarter Life Crisis' thing. This was interesting seeing that more than half of our adteam is made up of seniors about graduate, which is typically the most common trigger for a quarter life crisis. I experienced mine a few weeks ago. I was having a bad day and I asked one of my good friends if they would run away to Uno's with me so I could eat my comfort food, their Honey Crisp Chicken Salad, something that has helped me through every gross day I can remember since freshman year. Sat down, ordered the salad, fork and knife in hands like Wile E. Coyote, only to find out that the Roadrunner on my plate was actually an ACME decoy. Uno's Corporate completely changed the contents my comfort salad!
Quarter Life Crisis kicked in instantaneously. Impending change became a reality, and my entire four years of amazement flashed behind my eyes. I lived through it but I was apparently so blatantly horrified, that my server must have noticed. The discomfort salad never ended up on the bill.
Choosing to go to Business School was a great decision, I've learned so much and I am already using the knowledge and experiences every day. But I am so freaking excited to get back to the things I use to live and breath when was a kid. I had myself pretty figured out when I was about nine before the wrath of adolescent anxieties took precedence.
Everyone around me is asking me if I'm ready for the real world, if I'm ready to grow up now that I'm graduating college. Ridiculous. And don't mistake my objection as naive millennial laziness. I love to work, I can't wait to work my ass off in the name of something that feels right. But I refuse to take my diploma as some kind of jail sentence. Forgive the cliche but life really is what you make of it. Those who tell themselves it is now time to grow up will quickly become frail and irrelevant. In a matter of time those jobs that they squatted on will be lost to younger spirits who still have the fire for life, and work for that matter.
College Graduation is less than two weeks away. I am not scared, I am not sad that "its over." I'm just so ready for another opportunity to step it up and get at my future, and even though I'm not exactly sure what that future will entail, all the better.
