Hey, guys! Sorry I haven't posted in a while. It's been a very long week for me, trying to get back into the groove of school. Anyway, I'm a junior this year, and I'm just starting to seriously consider where in the world I'm gonna go to college, and what in the world I'm gonna do. So, in case you were looking for a professional who has long-since been through the "finding the right college" part of their life, you may need to know I do NOT have my college career all figured out. It's actually kind of scary thinking about it all. If you've already been through this stage of your life, I'm sure you remember the major stress you went through. I mean, I'm not exactly to the point where I'm as tight as a spandex, but I'm definitely in the bathing-suit-tight stage, and the all-my-relatives-just-want-to-know-what-i'm-going-to-with-the-rest-of-my-life stage for sure. So anyways, I've come up with a little strategy to help me through the next couple of months, especially. If you're where I am, these four tips should hep you out as well. :)
1. Prayer
Well, this one should be your first step. If God is the One in the driving seat on the road to your future, then it will definitely help to have a lot of chatter coming from the passenger side, if you know what I mean. Talk to the Driver, and eventually He'll show you where He wants you to go.
2. Persistence
Don't give up! Please, please, I beg you, don't give up! Along with that, keep moving ahead, inch by inch if that's what it takes. Sometimes it's going to be really hard, and you're not going to know which college to choose, but if you keep researching, if you keep learning and gaining knowledge about your choices, it'll help.
I received a little tip only a few days ago that should help. Use a notebook when going through college choices, and jot down pros and cons, money amounts, interesting tidbits about the programs you're looking through... etc. (If you want, invest a couple extra bucks in the notebook of your choice. A colorful one can symbolize how bright and exciting your future is going to be!!)
3. Patience
It's going to take a lot of patience, especially in the "This Is Your Future" department. Unfortunate as it is, there's a 99.9% chance that the clouds will not spell out the name of the college you're going to go to. Stinks, right? So this is where it takes a lot of time. Sometimes answers to prayer take a looooong time (I know this personally from my own experiences). And sometimes research is overwhelmingly slow and there's just not enough of it, and some of it hasn't come in the mail (yeah I've been waiting ages), and, and, and...
I hate waiting. But I'm learning... slowly.
4. Pip's Advice-
Don't Do it All at Once
This is my personal favorite. "Don't do it all at once" means that I can take a breath! Which breathing... it's relaxing. It's good. Yeah, breathing is good. My Pip (a.k.a. my grandpa) gave me this advice when talking to me about my college choices. He asked me which ones I was looking at and I all about fell from my seat trying to come up with an intellectual-sounding reply. Which ones was I looking at?
Well... at the time? None. Zero. Zip. Nada. Terrible, right? I'm a junior and at that point you wouldn't have found a single college name in my Google history, nor would you have caught me dead reading any college billboard signs. And I definitely hadn't even considered checking the clouds for any college names. ;) As Pip looked at me, waiting a reply, I was desperately searching for a response that could please my grandpa, but I had none! I wasn't prepared for this question, let alone college!
And then he started talking to me. Helping me. The notebook tip? I got it from him. The "don't do it all at once" advice? Him. He sat across from me and gave me tips on how to search for what I wanted. I thank God for my Pip. With him laying it all out on the table like that, I realized I was going to be okay, and I could do it... I could research and learn and dig deep. I just wouldn't do it all at once (because I wouldn't have to).
Well, this one should be your first step. If God is the One in the driving seat on the road to your future, then it will definitely help to have a lot of chatter coming from the passenger side, if you know what I mean. Talk to the Driver, and eventually He'll show you where He wants you to go.
2. Persistence
Don't give up! Please, please, I beg you, don't give up! Along with that, keep moving ahead, inch by inch if that's what it takes. Sometimes it's going to be really hard, and you're not going to know which college to choose, but if you keep researching, if you keep learning and gaining knowledge about your choices, it'll help.
I received a little tip only a few days ago that should help. Use a notebook when going through college choices, and jot down pros and cons, money amounts, interesting tidbits about the programs you're looking through... etc. (If you want, invest a couple extra bucks in the notebook of your choice. A colorful one can symbolize how bright and exciting your future is going to be!!)
3. Patience
It's going to take a lot of patience, especially in the "This Is Your Future" department. Unfortunate as it is, there's a 99.9% chance that the clouds will not spell out the name of the college you're going to go to. Stinks, right? So this is where it takes a lot of time. Sometimes answers to prayer take a looooong time (I know this personally from my own experiences). And sometimes research is overwhelmingly slow and there's just not enough of it, and some of it hasn't come in the mail (yeah I've been waiting ages), and, and, and...
I hate waiting. But I'm learning... slowly.
4. Pip's Advice-
Don't Do it All at Once
This is my personal favorite. "Don't do it all at once" means that I can take a breath! Which breathing... it's relaxing. It's good. Yeah, breathing is good. My Pip (a.k.a. my grandpa) gave me this advice when talking to me about my college choices. He asked me which ones I was looking at and I all about fell from my seat trying to come up with an intellectual-sounding reply. Which ones was I looking at?
Well... at the time? None. Zero. Zip. Nada. Terrible, right? I'm a junior and at that point you wouldn't have found a single college name in my Google history, nor would you have caught me dead reading any college billboard signs. And I definitely hadn't even considered checking the clouds for any college names. ;) As Pip looked at me, waiting a reply, I was desperately searching for a response that could please my grandpa, but I had none! I wasn't prepared for this question, let alone college!
And then he started talking to me. Helping me. The notebook tip? I got it from him. The "don't do it all at once" advice? Him. He sat across from me and gave me tips on how to search for what I wanted. I thank God for my Pip. With him laying it all out on the table like that, I realized I was going to be okay, and I could do it... I could research and learn and dig deep. I just wouldn't do it all at once (because I wouldn't have to).