17 Pieces of Advice for Fresh College Grads

My college graduation day was an ecstatic blur – full of wonder, hope, fear, and pride. Part of becoming a full-fledged adult is the wandering, the getting lost, and climbing your own mountain, but there are some practical work and life tips that I hope to save you precious time on. Here’s a random amalgamation of my advice for fresh college grads out there. I haven’t learned everything yet, but I’ve picked up some good bits of information along my journey. Without further ado!

Work Stuff

Mistakes are okay. Mistakes can be great, in the grand scheme of things. It’s how you handle these mistakes that actually affects how people view you as a professional and individual contributor. Good managers are aware that fresh college grads, no matter how smart they are, don’t have the real world experience to maneuver certain work politics or business communication. Plus, everyone makes mistakes – even the CEO.
- Just make sure to acknowledge that you made a mistake, thank whoever brought it to your attention, ask how things are supposed to be done, and apply this information to other situations.
- That said, absolutely double-check the “easy” stuff. You don’t want to screw up something that you know how to do just because you sped through it carelessly. Humans tend to remember the egregious negative moments, so don’t waste your “mistake allowance” on simple things.

Keep a work journal for all things professional and career-related! It is crucial to keep track of your wins and contributions at work in your own narrative so you can bring them up when it’s time to ask for a raise or have your performance review. For more on why you should keep a work journal and how to do it, check out my article here.

Dress 1 level sharper than your company’s dress code. First of all, marketing is usually an external-facing or social role in which you need to make good impressions. Secondly, “fake it til you make it” is real. I used to be at a startup with no dress code (people wore sweats). However, I was meeting with lawyers and clients and wanted to be taken seriously. My frequent uniform was a slim-cut sweater, high-waisted jeans, and heeled ankle boots. (Plus a sleek bun, if I wanted to wrestle with my hair.) Showing up dressed to impress made me feel capable.

People are always watching. Not in a creepy way, but if you’re always on your phone or browsing the latest at Aritzia, people will notice. It’s not a good look, so save that for after-work hours. You don’t want co-workers to have the perception that you’re lazy or don’t spend a lot of time working.

Keep reading and writing. I actually only recently realized this. In college, I was constantly consuming good information in different formats (textbooks, conferences, lectures) and producing a ton as well (essays, stories, short answers). Now at work, I write very matter-of-fact emails or objective results summaries. The other day I had to write a more creative, visionary piece and it shouldn’t have taken me long at all. But I felt stuck and helpless because I hadn’t written something like this in such a long time. I wish I had kept up with my writing skills and now I will definitely start practicing again.

Ask for help before the problem balloons. There is definitely merit to figuring something out on your own. Figuring stuff out is character-building. However, sometimes it takes a village to get things done in an appropriate business timeline. If the time and cost to doing something on your own is going to be greater than the benefits, ask for help. Don’t have too much ego around doing it all by yourself.

Master work politics and get visibility. This isn’t a concrete rule, but spend 10-20% of your time communicating to your boss/team about everything you’re accomplishing. I’m not telling you to be boastful, but you can’t underplay your hard work. People often don’t understand how long things take if they’re not the ones responsible, and you should let them know that the presentation took a week or the research took a few full days. If you don’t tell them, they won’t know.
- I once had a horrible manager who didn’t provide the feedback I requested on a PowerPoint, but then reviewed the final product and told me to make big changes to text and to re-do the color scheme. I was happy to do it, but 1 hour later, she’d pinged me, “Have you done it yet? Really need it ASAP.” I felt unappreciated and she had no idea that this was a large request. Partly her fault, but I could have also communicated to her a reasonable estimate for completion.
- Especially in a WFH environment, I like to over-communicate to my boss about the different things I’m working on. It can be as simple as a weekly email or Slack message with bullet points on what you’re prioritizing and where you’ve been spending time.

Life Stuff

Surround yourself with great people. I’ve included a few bullets on people and relationships here because, well, you’ll be dealing with people for the rest of your life. I really believe that you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with (in the words of Jim Rohn), so choose carefully. Think really hard about your roommates, your friends, your social media consumption. Their behaviors and attitudes will rub off on you, no matter how independent you think you are. You are responsible for designing the person you want to become.

Keep making new friends. It’s tough when you leave your college bubble where the kids look, dress, and act like you. I get it, it feels like you belong somewhere. But there is a whole wide world out there full of people who are complex, different, and open-minded. I struggled with making friends in the sprawling city of Los Angeles in my first 2 years here. Just keep swimming! You won’t become fast friends with every person you meet. A great friend that you’re compatible with is a needle in a haystack.

Remove toxic people from your life. This will be hard, and probably controversial. Just because it’s the right decision doesn’t mean it’ll make you happy instantly. I don’t mean that you should cut off friends who made a little faux pas or accidentally said something they shouldn’t have. I mean that you should distance yourself from people who fundamentally disrespect you, make you feel bad inside, and always bring you down. This might be your oldest friend (it’s happened to me), it might be your roommate. Think critically about it before you act.

Invest financially in things that you’ll use all the time. If you love to cook, spend money on an excellent chef’s knife and non-toxic cookware. If you pack lunch every day, get a sturdy container and wipeable lunch bag. If you don’t get natural light in your home, get a high-quality task lamp with a halogen or fluorescent bulb. You get the point. Investing in good items will save you time and money in the long run, while boosting happiness and productivity. Don’t scrimp on things you will rely on heavily, because you’ll end up spending more money in the long run.

Absolutely use up health benefits if your company offers them. That’s real money. Get your twice-yearly dental cleaning, get the annual physical, and update your eyeglass prescription.
- And on that note, learn how to take care of your body. We feel invincible in our 20s but that won’t be the case forever. Pretty soon, those Tequila Tuesdays turn into unwell Wednesdays… now that’s a sad moment. I’m not quite there yet, but I’ve seen this happen to friends. Have as much fun as you can while you’re young and say yes to going out – but take care of yourself. Take vitamins, get your greens, stretch, sleep more.

Have an emergency budget! You might spill water on your laptop, suddenly need glasses, or need new car tires. Not fun to think about, but budgeting for these things is way less stressful than going into debt. Some of my friends save this in a lump-sum and don’t touch it, others put away $50-100 per paycheck. Do what works for you.

Going to friends’ weddings is expensive – plan in advance. “Expensive” is relative, but I was really surprised by the costs associated with the first few weddings I attended. As a guest, you need to plan for a nice gift, travel + lodging, and maybe your plus-one. As a bridesmaid, I felt like I was bleeding money. The bridesmaid get-togethers, engagement party, bridal shower (and gift), bachelorette party, the bridesmaid dress and shoes, the actual wedding. Make sure you start saving money for these important life events in advance.

Remember people’s birthdays. Put your family and friends’ birthdays in an online calendar (like iCal or Google Calendar) and have them repeat automatically every year. Send them a card via snail mail or Doordash them a cupcake! Doesn’t take much to make someone feel special, and it’s important to take care of your relationships.

Make big goals and don’t be afraid to revise them as life happens. When I graduated college, I had this idea that real life would be like the movies – going to parties all the time, making power moves in the office, brunching on Saturdays. I made both meaningful and superficial goals (nothing wrong with the finer things in life) around the jobs I wanted, how I wanted to give back to my community, which LA neighborhood I would live in, and the car I would have. My perspective on life is different now, and though my intention of achieving overall happiness remains the same, some of the goals have been revised. You won’t have your 22-year-old mindset forever, which is great! Dream bigger and make changes to your ambitions.

Stay in your lane. This is probably the most important thing I’ve learned how to do for my productivity, sanity, and emotional well-being. Everyone moves at their own pace. I don’t say this to make you feel better in the moment – I really mean it. Don’t look to others’ lives to compare. It’ll only freak you out and hamper your abilities. Keep chipping away and you’ll become the person you were meant to be. A fire under your ass can be helpful, but for the most part, be calm and enjoy life.
- I have friends who started out making $200K in finance. When we were all young and focused on “making it,” they were the object of so much envy. Fast forward, they either burned out or their earnings flatlined, while my friends who previously ate instant ramen while working on passion projects finally got their big breaks in Hollywood.
- I have friends who searched for love their whole lives and endured countless horrible breakups, and then finally found their person. Awesome people around me have gotten engaged at different ages (18, 25, 30, 42, for example!) by staying true to themselves and are now happier than they’d ever dreamed of.
- Life is short, but life is also long (if that makes sense). You have time and everything will be okay.