我如何度过毕业忧郁期

I finally have a job， 18 months after graduating. It hasnt been an easy path. In fact， at times， its been downright miserable. The howls over statistics about graduate unemployment and dole claims may already be fading from memory， but for me the graduate blues went much deeper than the snappy headlines suggested.

After years of rigid structure and clear linear progression through institutions， I was finally left to my own devices to find a job. As I slowly began to comprehend the vastness of the world and the many roles I could assume within it， I was at times reduced to a nervous wreck.

Economists， editors and parents have been quick to blame the statistics on the recession， but in all honesty， I didnt know any different. In my case， and the same was true for many of my friends as well， the real problem was the mentality I had when I graduated.

Having gone to a good university， and with a reasonable idea of what I wanted to do next， I graduated and began looking for the perfect next step. It felt like the first real test of who I was and what I could achieve. The pressure I put on that decision， needless to say， was immense.

Equipped with only a rudimentary knowledge of the options open to me—in my eyes a major failing of the current university system—I stumbled blindly but stubbornly in the direction I thought was best.

This， initially， was fashion journalism. I wanted to write and I liked fashion， so at the time nothing seemed more obvious than securing as many internships at relevant publications as possible. After a few weeks of being “workie” Devil Wears Prada-style， I was having some serious doubts about my nascent career plans.

Eventually， after a bit of head-scratching， I changed tack. I figured that while fashion wasnt my world， journalism was， so I emailed the other departments at the paper I was at， applied for experience at completely different magazines， and even looked for internships abroad.

A year later， I had tried everything， from freelancing and subediting to photography and documentary filming. I had written about the arts， politics and social issues. During that period， I lost count of the number of times I felt like giving up on journalism altogether， especially when it felt like I would never get a job and was simply banging my head against a brick wall.

My way of dealing with that feeling was to keep moving. The combination of the sudden freedom and the absence of any framework in which to make decisions can be a paralysing one， but I guarantee that the lost feeling disappears the moment you have something， anything， to get you up in the morning and keep you busy during the day.

Of course you want to do something that is a step towards your dream job， but it doesnt pay to be narrow-minded about how you are going to get there. If one thing isnt working， shifting the emphasis slightly can open a door you hadnt even thought about.

While I was helping a freelancer with research， he offered to teach me how to use a video camera. I had previously ruled out a career in film and television， for reasons I can no longer remember， but not only did the experience open my mind to other possibilities， I also really enjoyed it. Filming is now something Ill be picking up again in the near future， and a skill Im thankful to have under my belt.

Of course， Im not alone finding these choices difficult. One of my friends was so overwhelmed by the number of different directions to go in that she decided to jump straight into a marketing role without stopping to consider what she actually wanted to do. A year on， although sick of her job she also insists she doesnt regret her choice at all. Im inclined to believe her. She is not only a year up on me in terms of practical work experience， but she also has a much better idea of what she wants from her next position.

My point is that there is no use getting bogged down in grand ideas of how your career should start off. Its natural to feel like the rest of your life depends on the steps you take now， but in reality， most people change careers several times throughout their life. That sense of desperation and loss between graduating and finding what you want to do is normal， but not unmanageable.

I tackled it by making sure that every day I did something to work toward my final goal of a job in journalism， whether that was work experience， talking to someone in my field， or just applying for jobs and seeing what happened.

Despite how it may feel， very few land their dream job straight away. If you stay flexible about how the next few years pan out， you may be pleasantly surprised by the consequences. If not， you can always quit. After all， its only a job.

畢业18个月后，我终于找到了一份工作。过程充满了艰辛。事实上，有时候，情况非常糟糕。有关毕业生失业和申请失业救济金的分析数据虽然让人抓狂，但已渐渐被遗忘，而我认为毕业时的惆怅比本文简练的标题还要深刻得多。

经历了几年固化的学习模式、在学校按部就班的生活后，终于到了要靠自己找工作的时候了。我渐渐明白了世界是如此之大，我在其中可以扮演的角色如此之多，这使我不时感到躁动不安。

经济学家、编辑、父母都急着抱怨经济衰退的数据，但说实在的，我不知道那对我有什么影响。对我和我多数朋友来说，真正的问题是我毕业时的心态。

我就读于一所不错的大学，对自己接下来要做的事情有着合理的想法，毕业后我开始寻找完美的下一步。感觉那是第一次经历“我是谁”，“我能做什么”的真正考验。不必多说，做那样的决定让我感到巨大的压力。

我对自己能选择的工作只是略懂皮毛——在我看来，这是目前大学教育体系的主要问题——我盲目地、跌跌撞撞地、固执地在我认为是最好的方向上前行。

最开始涉足的是时尚新闻业。我想写作，喜欢时尚，因此，在那时，眼下要做的事当然是尽可能多地在相关的出版社获得实习机会。我变成了《穿普拉达的女王》那样的工作狂，几周后，我对自己不成熟的职业规划感到深深的忧虑。

最终，经过一番苦思冥想，我作出了改变。我明白了时尚行业并不适合我，但新闻业的方向是对的，因此，我给当时所在的实习报社的其他部门发邮件，申请到一个完全不同的杂志编辑部实习，甚至在寻找出国实习的机会。

一年后，从自由工作者到助理编辑，从摄影到拍摄纪录片，我什么都尝试了一遍。我写过关于艺术、政治、社会时事的文章。在那段时期，我已记不清有多少次想完全放弃新闻业，尤其是当我感觉自己永远不可能获得一份工作，我只不过是在把头撞向砖墙的时候。

我处理这种情绪的方法就是不停地工作。突如其来的自由以及没有了限制决定的条条框框对我都没有帮助，但只要我有事可做，每天早上催促自己起床，让自己忙碌一整天时，这种失落的感觉就会消失。

當然，你会想做一些让自己更接近理想工作的事情，但不能以狭隘的目光看待该如何达到目的。要是一件事行不通，稍微转换一下重点就能打开一道你想都没想到过的大门。

在我协助一位自由作家做调查研究时，他教我怎样使用摄像机。我之前辞掉了一份电影和电视行业的工作，我已记不起其中的原因，但那次经历不仅让我有了更多选择，还让我真正喜欢上了摄影。我在不久后将会再次投入到摄影行业中，我很庆幸自己学会了这项技能。

当然，并不是只有我难以作出抉择。我的一位朋友因要面对如此多不同的选择而感到无所适从，她没有停下来好好思考自己真正想做的是什么就直接投身市场营销行业。过了一年，尽管厌恶这份工作，她还是坚称不后悔作出这样的选择。我还是相信她的。她不但比我多一年的实际工作经验，而且她对于下一个想得到的职位有着更为清晰的想法。

我要说的是，迷失于如何开展事业的诸多伟大想法中是毫无用处的。自然，你会觉得你的一生就在于此刻选择的路，但事实上，许多人一生会改变职业好几次。即将离开大学校园，找一份自己想要的工作，这时候大家普遍会感到压抑和失落，但这都是可以解决的。

我的解决办法就是确保每天都向着自己的最终目标——新闻业内的一份工作，而作出努力，不管是获得工作经验，跟我领域内的人交谈，还是应聘职位，看看结果如何。

不管你感觉如何，很少人会在一开始就获得理想的工作。如果你灵活处理接下来几年所得的收获，你会得到惊喜的结果。如果没有，你大可以辞职。说到底，那只是一份工作而已。