They say college is the phase in your life where you start to construct a path or create a blueprint to follow for your future. But life after college is far from the comfort of just sitting on your classroom and listen to what the professor is saying, because out there?! It is a jungle – wild, untamed and full of savages that will try to prey on you until you’re only left with bones… at least metaphorically.

Just as the old saying goes – ‘You want to make god laugh? Tell him your plans.” Right after college, no matter what degree you got or how high your academic grades are, life will try to stir you up until you vomit and faint. You can ask other people who are ten or twenty years pass on graduating college and now working on “adulting” and most of them will probably want to turn back time and just really enjoy the college.

But not everything should be grieved on, graduating college is also one of the most refreshing and rejuvenating feeling in your life; knowing that despite the knockouts and the uppercuts life and the university thrown at you, you still manage to stand up with a black-eye and one less tooth on your smile.

Despite how much I really want to share on how to land your dream job, I cannot help you with that as I’m also stumbling and fumbling my way through that foggy path, however, I can teach you or at least provide you with great practical tips on how you can survive another excruciating months of transition from your college life to the real ‘adulting’ world.

1.)   Take it as a down time.

Unless you’re living on your own, no financial help from your parents or you’re really on your own 100%, you should take the transitioning phase from college to a working “adult” a little bit slower and less serious than usual. Now, this is not meant to teach you to just go carefree and slouch on the couch all day and binge watch Netflix. But no matter how high your grades are, a little career delay doesn’t meant you’re not good enough, it only means that it’s probably not the right one for you. Instead, take the transitioning phase in your life right now to mend relationships that has been broken because of the busy-ness of college life, establish a network that might help on jumping start of your career and find a hobby, passion or upgrade a more practical skill that you actually like.

2.)   Don’t be afraid to take chances.

Pounding the pavement looking for job opportunities and getting rejected all at once is not the end of the world. Getting rejected is one of the most gut-wrenching feeling in your life and it will probably damage your self esteem. But instead on wallowing on where you’re not good at and feeding the demons of your head, take the experience and feelings as a teacher and swallow the bitter pill. The most important thing is you tried. Now take another chance and let luck do its work. ‘Chance is the first step you take and luck is what comes afterward. – Amy Tan’

3.)   Don’t hesitate to pop your bubbles.

Sometimes life has a habit of pushing you out of your bubble and the only thing you can do is to pop it and cruise on the river’s current. Who would know that a degree holder in Marketing Management would end up writing news articles, editing news footage and interviewing people out on the street as his primary source of living while also earning money from his new-found passion? I may have ended up in journalism but that doesn’t mean my marketing degree has been thrown out in the trash. I still do online courses in digital marketing, taking freelance marketing jobs and the cherry on top is that I now know that writing makes my soul swoon.

4. Establish Network and Rummage for Opportunities.

While having setbacks, it’s important to establish your network, if not in real life with real humans, then at least on wide varieties of social media sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Create a good profile, update your resume and mold it to be one of your most valuable professional asset. Go to job fairs, ask your local government for local jobs near you. Go on your laptop and search for any freelance or part time jobs. Just go out – talk to new people on your favorite coffee shop, or bookstore or when you walk your dog. Always be nice, you’ll never know when a fairy in-disguise shows up and make one of your wish come true.

5. Take the time to grow.

Once you landed your first job, your first work is to give yourself some space to grow. Stop pushing yourself to be perfect at work and allow mistakes to happen. No one has lived their life and work the first time without making some forgivable mistakes. Let yourself familiarize with your environment and take the first day of job to establish connection and relationship with your colleagues, they will be your second family, might as well make the time you’re going to spend in the office conducive, right?

6. Live within your means.

I get it! Eating at a fancy restaurant, treating yourself to a relaxing spa or just buying yourself some good stuff is a reward you deserve after those long emotionally and physically debilitating weeks of working. Sometimes, buying yourself some stuff is one of the most relaxing and fulfilling feelings, but no matter how much you earn or how much you need to budget for everyday expenses, you got to save! The best method you can practically apply is to save at least 10 percent of your savings into another bank account and in no way, you’re ever going to spend that. Make that 10 percent savings every pay off a time capsule savings that you’re only going to spend in a life or death situation.

7. Don’t overwork.

Landing your first job can be quite overwhelming. You will feel like you need to prove yourself to your supervisor or your company that you are an asset and not a liability. But sometimes, proving too much can do more harm than good. Did you know that millenials are named as the burn out generation? Millenials, because of the technological advantage and the rising need to be on par with other millenials; competing and proving to the world that they are up to any challenge can cause an early onset of stress and burn out. Millenials will take on too much work and sometimes with little or no salary raise just to prove their capabilities will not only harm their own health but it will rise the expectation of the company and the system to demand more work with less pay because millenials are NOT fighting the system but trying to win it.

8. Never compromise ‘Me-time.’

Working for more or less 40 hours per week can seriously put you into fatigue and the never ending cycle of self-care deprivation. It’s addicting to work, guaranteed; but you have to allot a specific amount of time to yourself just to unwind and let loose. Set a day per week where you allow yourself to be unproductive or lazy. It’s not bad nor shameful. It’s a self preservation technique to slowly pull out your self on the system of overworking, capitalism and social pressure. Take the time to unplug from social media and just live a little. Go out to the park and take some sunlight. Watch your favorite movie or just ‘Netflix and chill’. Read books or take the time to water and nourish your houseplants which, study says can uplift your mood and filter out toxic in the air. Try new stuff, and just breathe. Take care of your physical and mental health, there’s nothing on par with that.