An Anthology of What Next; a story told in the Eyes of 12 People — Pt. 1
I got a few friends to talk about how they got through and are getting through the what next phase.
I’ve been thinking about an introduction. I’m reminded of how I used to hate the What Next question. I have been asked countless times but the one time my mum asked, it felt like, “Son, I love you and I know everything’s gonna be alright! BUT I hope you are still moving right” and I think that’s what it really is. Starting from a place of self-worth and working towards what you seek.
“You are enough.
On the day you resist peer pressure and on the day you give in. On the day you enter college and on the day you enter rehab. On the day you get your first promotion and on the day you get your first pink slip. On the day you run a triathlon and on the day of your diagnosis . . .
You are enough.”
Meet the Avengers !
After Nss what next, Victor Morgan.
That question eventually became annoying as people kept asking, but interestingly it came with an awareness like, Yo seriously what next?
That moment is kind of scary. Well, in the end everything turns out fine, no matter how long. It’s an assurance I’m very sure of. But you need to work towards it.
Personally, sometimes I feel the pressure even now. Pressure from friends, colleagues and then family. I try my best to not let it get to me, not to the point where depression starts to set in, I use it as motivation to keep working hard on myself. I hope you do too
Also, find time and talk to God about all these things, ask him for direction, ideas and clarity. I think this is the most salient point. The life thing can be very blurry at times, and it’s only God who can make things clear, trust me.
Talk to people very close to you about these things; no man is an island. Talk about it and talk out of it. The uncertainty and pressure, they may provide company (pun intended).
I get some side money from gigs my friends link me to. Well, partly because they know I’m good at what I do, but sometimes it’s because I talk to them and they know what’s going on, so they try their best and send me whatever opportunity they find my way.
“Talk to people very close to you about these things; no man is an island. Talk about it and talk out of it. The uncertainty and pressure, they may provide good company (pun intended).”
— Victor Morgan
All they said was true, Sam Elizabeth.
The advice you get from people are countless; know what you want to do even before service ends, apply for scholarships for that’s what first class can offer you; definitely not a guaranteed job. Some offered “get the work experience because recruiters value that more” and others said “I’ve been here before and I did this and that… you should too”.
They are all right and I probably experienced all of them and more at different points in my hopefully short period of unemployment. The interesting aspect of it was that, I was truly responsible for whichever path I chose and what a shock that was to me; there was no escaping that fact. Every choice was mine to make and the lack of opportunities (or so my lazy self thought) made it even harder to act blind to such responsibility. It would have been easier for me to just slide into a career and not have to have that discussion with myself and everyone else about what I wanted to do with my life.
For all you know that friend you planned your life with in school had a silver spoon in his school bag
Knowing all these will not make your experience easier or ordinary, or maybe that’s what it actually is, ordinary! Nevertheless, it can give you the comfort that it is normal and that everyone goes through it. You may be thinking this battle is reserved for only graduates. Well, no, it is for every adult. Do you think you will be fine when you get a job? Your dream job? The best salary? A spouse? A child? Alternatively, all of it? I do not believe so. We will always want something to better our current state and, that is a very humane thing.
This I can say; speak to the grownups, sieve through what they have to say because you are the sum of the knowledge and information you collect. Connect with family and friends; they are your truest plug (finance and all).
Go to LinkedIn for an unhealthy dose of motivation; it helps sometimes. Most importantly, hold on to God as if He is your only possession because He really is. Don’t let life take away your innocence and optimism, for there is no one path to a truly successful life. If you will make it or not, who knows ?
Just do your best, and you should be fine. I think.
“For all you know that friend you planned your life with in school had a silver spoon in his school bag”
— Sam Elizabeth
Preface, Konadu D. Akua
During my service year, I was privileged to present at an international conference which sparked my interest to go further into academia. I applied for a masters program a month to the end of the service year. When service was over, I had about six months to go back to school. I started thinking of what I could do to earn money in the meantime.
My options were very limited since I wasn’t looking for anything long-term. I was fortunate to get an internship offer where I live, as well as a swim coaching job. I went for the latter.
My advice however to NSS graduates would be, first scan your immediate environment because there are opportunities yet to be discovered or learn a skill and make money out of it. It could be painting, playing an instrument, leather works etc.
Or you can as well go back to school just like I did.
“…first scan your immediate environment because there are opportunities yet to be discovered or learn a skill and make money out of it.”
— Konadu D. Akua
Life after National Service is madness, Dzidula Amesimeku.
I’ll tell you the truth, everyone else is a liar.
Don’t listen to your friend who got into GNPC last week. He’s telling lies, he didn’t have to interview but Congratulations to him. He KNACK!!
MENTORSHIP will cut your learning by half. Find an honest person who has laboured through the system and let them guide you. I promise you if you listen and you learn, you’ll progress.
BE AGGRESSIVE — You are fresh from the University, there’s an assertion that you don’t know much. Let’s assume it’s true, play it to your advantage. Your mind is fertile, anything you pick up to learn, you can be a master of it. So apply to industries you consider unfamiliar. Take relevant courses outside your scope. Advanced Excel, Python, UI/UX.
COUNTLESS. Learn them aggressively!
APPLY. APPLY. APPLY.
I have a job (thanks be to God) but last week I received a rejection mail from the German Agency for International Cooperation. Guess what, I applied to that job 11 months ago. I’m still being rejected.
ATS. ATS. ATS. APPLY SMART!
Here’s another tip, every single job you apply has a specific job description and so you cannot use one CV to apply to 10 jobs. That’s not a great move, instead sit down, craft a good CV (several resources are available on the internet). Once you craft a great CV, tailor it to the job description.
HR teams do not spend time reviewing CVs manually anymore. The Applicant tracking system sieves the best candidates for the Hiring Manager. This is a lot of talk, don’t take my word for it. Pause and google ATS. You’ll learn more.
Uncle Kofi at GIPC lied, he took your CV and said I’ll see what I can do. Chances are CV is on the last shelf of his office tray if not shredded. He’s forgotten about it.
Kwaku, take matters into your own hands. Apply to any graduate program you see especially these international firms. Your view point will change and you’ll never need my advice again.
“Apply to any graduate program you see especially these international firms. Your view point will change and you’ll never need my advice again.”
— Dzidula Amesimeku
Kwakye A. Susana.
I don’t have the perfect advice but does anyone?
One thing I’d say is, it’s okay if you’ve not figured out what you want to do after. There are a plethora of options. The fortunate ones that are retained, I’m sure would have less prayer topics. But really this convo is not for them because at least they’ve been given some extra time to really ponder over what to do. For those of us who really have no option after service,
relax. breathe. don’t panic. breathe. don’t compare yourselves to others as well because we all have a different path. sip water. breathe.
I would advise you to make the best use of the time you have available. Be it internships, taking courses online, learning a new skill, reading, trying the entrepreneurial role, helping your parents at their shops or on their farms, whatever positive thing it may be, I plead with you not to stop learning.
It may be unpleasant especially if you think it’s quite below you. Just take advantage of it. It all forms part of the learning process. Quite a few people have a smooth transition immediately after service especially in our part of the world. It doesn’t mean your path can’t be smooth too.
You may have a few bumps here and there and you’d want to give up but please let’s keep our hopes alive and never for once give up. If you have the opportunity to attend seminars and networking events, take advantage of that as well. We never know who our helper could be especially during the job hunting period.
Lastly, if all you’re trying to do seems futile (notice I used seem), don’t give up. It would all make sense some day and it’d all form part of your growth and identity!
“For those of us who really have no option after service, relax, don’t panic especially don’t compare yourselves to others because we all have a different path.”
— Kwakye A. Susana
Bless the Broken Roads, Owusu D. Benedicta
Well, the only advice I will give is for those who weren’t lucky enough to be maintained like myself. They should use this opportunity to learn some skills to separate them from their colleagues.
I didn’t stay at home for long but while at home I took a couple of short courses on Coursera (courses needed in the job market). I applied for a couple of jobs and because of these courses I got a number of opportunities but at the end [redacted] called so I had to settle with that.
What I’ve noticed is everyone has that Accounting certificate that you have so what sets you apart from all these Accounting certificate holders?
And these skills I’m talking about, make sure you’ve really mastered it
“…everyone has that Accounting certificate that you have so what sets you apart from all these Accounting certificate holders?”
— Owusu D. Benedicta