It’s been a few years already since I started working and making money. At the moment, my income isn’t as consistent as I want it to be. However, I feel like I am working towards something that I want.
That to me is sufficient.
The transition from college to working is about the biggest transition one would have to take. It takes time to be clear about what you want to do. This period is an extremely life-changing period although not many people realize it. How you look at making money changes the way you look at work and life as a whole.
I think the biggest blessing that I have is that I am pretty clear about what I want at my age. This to me is my biggest blessing. With all honesty, I haven’t reach a stage where I am happy with the money that I am making. I feel like there is much to improve on with what I have to learn and the additional effort that I have to put in.
The past two years have been difficult with the confusion and questions that often arise from my path of being in my career. I am currently a freelance writer and a real estate agent. I have been offered at least 10 jobs but haven’t even considered one. That is the extent of my stubbornness. I haven’t even wrote a resume/CV before but I have got that many job offers.
I believe that those job offers are devils in disguise. Many of my friends think that I am stupid to reject those offers in favor of my uncertain career and income.
Frankly speaking, the more I think about it the more I realize that a job really is a deterrent from pursuing many things in life. The thing about not having a permanent job is that it frees myself to pursue other opportunities that come my way. I have entered businesses and lost money but I gain great lessons that may be invaluable.
I realize that those people who are working for others will never understand what it means to start up a business. Starting up a business is totally different from working with others. The amount of responsibility that you face is tremendous. It is not for anyone. I have learned that you need a certain kind of character to start up a business.
These are the things that I have learned in a nutshell:
- Be clear about what you want. I think this is the most important thing you will learn. You need to work towards what you want. Other people go after things that they want. Some people want to make a lot of money, others want financial independence while some want to contribute to others. What everyone wants is different. I am not saying that someone who wants to make a lot of money is worse than someone who wants to contribute to others. What I am asking is if what you are working towards is something you want or because other people want it.
- Consider a simple life when you are young. I think my ability to try different things and not be tied up to a certain job stems from my simple lifestyle. I don’t spend excessively on unnecessary items. I think I spend more in college than after college. With simplicity, comes freedom.
- Being dependent on parents isn’t a bad thing. This is one of the hardest thing for me to accept. I see so many of my friends want to step away from their parents just because they are able to. This allows you to really explore great things about yourself and what you love. To step away from your parents is great but bare in mind that in many situations, parents don’t really need for you to step away from them. Keep your lifestyle simple and you may be able to try many things.
- The early twenties are the best time to set up a business. You don’t need experience to set up a business. If experience is really needed, companies like facebook, apple and microsoft would never be created. Age is really just an excuse. Your early twenties are a period where you have little to no commitment. You have the world at your feet.
- Don’t get a job if you don’t really need one. This will be a controversial one. Getting a job limits you in ways you can never imagine. It limits your choices tremendously. I know some people have financial issues and such but let me post a question to you: Do you have financial issues and struggle to survive because of your lifestyle or because of your daily needs? There is a difference between a financial issue caused by struggling to have meals everyday and one caused by your lifestyle of having a car you can’t afford and your meals at TGIF.
- If you are into business, find for a business you believe in. A business that you believe in helps you. You will work harder. You have this deep conviction that it is a good product/service etc.
- Be careful with who you mix with. This is so blardy important that words can’t even describe. I have trouble mixing around with my working friends because to them, what they look forward to are drinks on a friday night or getting a new handphone. What drives me at present is to set up a location-independent business, not in trying to keep up with the Jonases. Frankly, I feel slightly withdrawn when I am with them.
- Be used to uncertainty. There is a certain kind of wisdom when you learn to be uncertain about things. When you do something that you never thought you will, you expand in ways you never imagine. At first it feels awkward, after sometime you realize you become a different person.
Time really flies when you are working. They say that your twenties are your fastest decade in your life. I have already lived two years of it.
At times I feel like I am not really working. I feel like I am looking for ‘playgrounds’ I can enter into to make money.
Seriously, really consider what I say about the job part. A job is about the worst thing you can do to your life. It’s a short term cure to a long term problem.
I am not that successful financially yet without having a job but I think success is really relative. Moreover, who knows what would happen in a few years time?
