Completing a college degree is a significant accomplishment. Almost two decades ago I was in my cap and gown sitting in Luckey Arena on Indiana Wesleyan University’s Marion campus. The commencement speaker was the leadership expert, John Maxwell. John is a dynamic speaker and talked about the power of influence, lifelong learning, and living out your faith in the workplace.
It was an inspiring talk, but to be perfectly honest, my mind kept reverting to two immediate worries. First, what J.O.B. am I going to get to pay off these student loans and support myself? Second, where am I going to live? Near my hometown, college town, or closer to my girlfriend (now wife)?
Completing my bachelor’s degree was an inflection point in my life: moving from the “schooling” stage to the “real world” of work and life decisions. Following my master’s graduation, management opportunities opened. As I look back and think about what I knew then versus now, there are three areas I wish I had considered more proactively: location, connection, and compounding. Each of these areas requires us to make a decision. The best advice I have received on decision making came from Ron Blue. I had the honor to work with Ron to start the Ron Blue Institute at IWU ten years ago. I remember him saying, “The longer the perspective, the better the decision.” Good advice and a perfect lens to think through for making decisions in each of these areas at graduation.
Location
Where one chooses to live following graduation can impact many aspects of their life. From a career perspective I would encourage you to think: Where are the best job opportunities for me? Living in a rural location can have advantages but limit career opportunities.
For instance, if you want to be a banker and get your first job in a small town with one bank, what happens if you lose your job or want a different experience? You will need to move or find a different career. However, if you live in NYC, Chicago, or Charlotte (all large banking hubs) there are thousands of job opportunities with hundreds of employers to consider. Until your experience and network are built, larger cities with an abundance of opportunities can be a great place for recent graduates to consider.
There are always exceptions to the rule. During the pandemic, we saw an increase in employees moving to rural locations and working remotely who had gained experienced in the big city, which brings us to our second area, connections.
Connection
Where one chooses to connect plays a large part in whom they become. Areas of connection include work, church, friends, family, etc. If you’re right out of college and looking for a place to work, who you work with can be more important than where you work.
Find an employer where you see successful individuals in a role you want five to ten years down the road. Before taking a job there, ask those individuals out for a cup of coffee. Tell them you would like to pursue their career path someday and ask for advice. How this conversation goes will give you key insights as to whether this would be a good environment to learn in and be mentored.
Compounding
This article would not feel complete, coming from a financial planner, without me touching on at least one important financial decision after graduation. At Ronald Blue Trust, we teach that there are five uses for your money: giving, taxes, margin (savings), debt, and living.
After graduation, you may be getting a new job or hopefully a promotion (with a pay raise). Do not forget to save and invest for the future. Your HR department may give you the option to sign up for your 401k. If your company offers a match, this is a great place to start. While admittedly I have a bent toward saving and investing, the concept of compounding was theoretical for me out of college. After two decades I have been amazed at the power of compounding even from the small contributions I made early in my career. Benjamin Franklin said, “Money makes money. And the money that money makes, makes money.” The only way to get your money working for you is to have some margin to save and invest.
Graduation is an exciting time and something to be proud of. Now is the time to start applying everything you have learned over the past few years. As you do, don’t forget to proactively think through the impact of the decisions you make on location, connection, and compounding to your future self decades down the road.