As a student, how did you respond when people ask you the question "What do you want to do in the future?" Did you have little to no idea what to say? Maybe you had too many ideas and thoughts, and you didn't know where to start? Perhaps you just have a rising sense of panic because you don't know how to respond to this, but you were just sure everyone else already has it all figured out.

As a high school and college student, I knew there were things I liked and were interested in, but I had next to no idea how any of the subjects I liked at school or the things I liked to read about and listen to would ever translate into a real 9-to-5 job or career that actually paid me money. 

I was also convinced that I had absolutely nothing to offer anyone, because I had never had a full-time job before. I was just one of hundreds of college students who had a few part-time jobs and internships and really knew nothing about the real world.

The spring before I graduated college, my plans for graduate school fell apart. I spent more than a few of sleepless nights applying for jobs until 6 AM. When I thought about my future, my thoughts were tinged with anxiety, frustration, and despair. 

What I didn't know at that time was that almost everyone in the world goes through this experience of uncertainty and change. 

In fact, here's a secret: most adults in the working world experience some uncertainty and doubt about their job on a day-to-day basis. 

The truth is that we continue to go out there, put in our time at work, learn skills and grow, and try things, not because we've figured it all out, but because we know that careers are a process, not something we achieve and then put on a shelf. 

But changing from focusing on on achievement to focusing on process is especially tough for early-career professionals. 

As new graduates of high school and college, you have thus far climbed the ladders of education from kindergarten to Grade 12, from freshman to senior year of college, and you're now on what I call "the plateau of work". It's flat, and it's just work for as far as the eye can see. 

Thus far in my career, I have had five full-time jobs. I have worked at small start-up organizations and large institutions with thousands of colleagues. I have worked at non-profits and for-profits. I have had jobs that I loved, jobs that I couldn't wait to leave, and jobs from which I learned an immense amount. On the other side of this divide, I want to tell my younger self: "It will be okay, and here is how." 

This is why I created Career Camp. So sign up for an event or a FREE 30-minute Discovery Call to learn how Career Camp can help you too.