5 Ways to Give Yourself Hope

One of the more difficult things about life after college graduation is that it can often hit people right in the gut and also in the first round. We each respond to adversity differently and we each reach a point when we've gotten beat up so bad that we need the best pep-talk our corner men can give us (gotta love boxing analogies). If you find yourself experiencing a dark night of the soul, feeling depressed, hopeless and like giving up, then I hope this short list of things I have learned that cheer me up can also help you get ready for a second round comeback!

1. No Work is Beneath You

The only thing beneath you is no work. If you find yourself unemployed, reconsider what standards you are setting for yourself and whether or not they are reasonable given your qualifications and the current economic climate. My Dad is a manager in the tech industry and told me that, given someone has the intellectual knowledge of the subject area, he has no problem with hiring people who have two years of experience working at Starbucks after college because it shows they are reliable and committed. Even if someone has relevant experience, he will usually discard resumes that reflect the person has been bouncing around from place to place for short periods of time, even if it is in the tech field. Say you have your degree and no experience, take something to support yourself and prove to future employers you are reliable. Your degree shows you have the academic knowledge, just support yourself for the meantime and be ready for the right opportunity when it comes.

2. Develop a Routine

One of things I do in transitional periods, or what Casey Mangan refers to as "limbo" for the post-graduate period of unemployment, is essentially anything that will get me out of bed. Exercise and volunteering are great outlets for the extra energy you are feeling at the moment. You might even consider scheduling your day hour-by-hour with different activities to keep yourself preoccupied. Definitely include time spent toward things like updating your LinkedIn profile and resume as well as job hunting. However, my friend Ca Do told me that he actually limited the number of applications he submitted every day during his limbo because he found it unhealthy to marry himself 24/7 to a task that takes most people a few months to complete.

3. Introspect

You may never have the same amount of free time in your life ever again. Go to church, go to mosque, go to temple...heck, go for a walk. If you don't know where to start, then do all of the above! During my period of limbo, I started my routine by attending Daily Mass at my closest church. I genuinely needed this time to pursue a closeness with God for spiritual healing. It was a very enriching spiritual experience and has helped me immensely.

You might also consider what exactly you view as the important part of your education. Socrates states that "the unexamined life is not worth living" and the ancient Greeks actually viewed education as a method of cultivating virtue. If you went to school for another reason (good job or lots of money), then take some time and reconsider some of the lessons you learned in school that will benefit your soul. A high income or prestige will not bring you happiness and before you move on to the next big thing, you must find (or begin the process of finding) happiness in your current state.

4. Reach Out to Your Family and Friends

Many of your new college-grad friends are probably having a difficult time during this rough transition as well. Call them (yes, with a phone and your voice!) and invest in those relationships. This probably will not result in a job, but what it will do is bring you a sense of fellowship in your current situation.

This is also a good time to intentionally give thanks for those members of your family who made sacrifices so that you can get to where you are today. Each family situation is unique, but a little introspection should give you an impression on who deserves a much belated thank you, world-class hug and some quality time spent together with none other than you (because you are a great person to spend time with!).

5. Stop Driving

I mean it. The automobile fosters individualism and isolationism, two things which are not terribly helpful for you at the moment. In my own limbo, when I attended daily mass every day, I rode my bike to the church from my home. The world is a completely different place when you use alternative means of transportation to get to where you want to go. People will say 'hello', little kids will wave and you will find yourself a large number of adorable dogs to pet. The exercise and exposure to nature are also excellent for your mood. Plus, you never know who you will meet once you cross your threshold!

And Finally...

Be bold and do whatever it takes to just keep moving forward. Remember you are never alone and if you ever feel alone, glance over list items 2-5 and pursue relationships with your fellow man.

Now go get 'em, tiger!

A Smooth Transition

Well, it's almost been two weeks of interning at World Vision so I thought I'd so some blogging on the experience for my own reflective purposes as well as to brief everyone on what it's like working there. After being taken out to lunch on the very first day, another kind staff member took me out later that week. We're both Catholic and seem to hold vastly different political views. He treated me to lunch and we had a 1.5 hour discussion on the political applications of our faith. Honestly a great conversation and a great person to work with.

The team and many of the people are just so incredibly kind and passionate about their work. On Monday, Richard Sterns, WVUSA's president, met with our team and I had an opportunity to meet him, which was a privilege. The discussion was how to balance advocacy with education so that we are not moving separately from the church and that Christians are moving together in the fight for justice. I wrote a reflection for my supervisor on how WV might need to engage with my generation. I volunteered to do so and he said he would be happy to read it. I felt compelled to because my generation of the church is quite different from our parents and grandparents' generations. I basically wrote that engagement strategies have to account for the diversity of the church in more ways than one and that over-catering to one demographic can result in irrelevancy in the future if the next generation of advocates isn't invested in. I had only been there at a week up until that point and I was lucky to even be present at the meeting. Consequently, I knew a meeting with the president was not the place for a weeklong intern to speak up on these issues.

Today was a rougher day, but I am so grateful to be in this environment that my appreciation overpowers my fatigue. It was tough because I was given less than a day to prepare the intern devotions, which about 20 people attended last week, and only four of us ended up attending this morning. I don't know what happened, but I felt a bit disrespected by those who didn't attend. Of course, there may be factors I don't know about and so I just brushed it off.

This week, I helped my supervisor prepare for a testimony before a congressional committee that will be happening tomorrow. He actually included some of my research in two appendices attached to his written testimony submitted to the commission. It was such a blast and I loved the work. He's taking me to watch his testimony tomorrow and I bought him an American flag lapel pin to express my gratitude.


Honestly, I love working here and I love this type of work. I also love the church, social justice and advocacy. This type of work is so much more rewarding at the moment than anything partisan because we get to critically engage so many different types of people to advocate for social justice. If things continue to go so well, I'm going to discuss options regarding returning after Peace Corps for another internship (which I can afford with the readjustment allowance) and/or a job. The field experience should make me a desirable candidate for employment. Of course, a lot can change in 27 months, so who knows what will happen? Still though, this or ministries like NETWORK and Sojourners seem like wonderful places to apply and I know the work would be very rewarding.

At the very least, I will schedule an appointment at the end of my internship to meet with my supervisor and ask what I will need to do to work for this type of organization in the future, even if I don't posses the current qualifications now.

Here's a link to info on the hearing (and where it can be watched on television): http://tlhrc.house.gov/hearing_notice.asp?id=1267

First Couple of Weeks in D.C.

This is my third time visiting our nation's capitol and I have such a different take of this city as a resident and without a tour group. Although D.C. has a bad rep as a city to live in, I am witnessing an urban renaissance take place across the District's neighborhoods. Many neighborhoods I have walked in are safer, even at night, than my hometown of San Jose. I don't want to communicate that things are perfect here because the poverty is quite apparent. Also quite apparent is the local population's disdain of the federal government over their lack of representation in Congress. The official motto on D.C.'s license plate is "No Taxation Without Representation," and I strongly feel their lack of congressional representation is a national shame. On the other hand, the city's residents enjoy the best infrastructure I have seen in the U.S. and the many jobs the federal government has to offer through its various offices and museums.

Here is an example of how hipster my neighborhood in Tacoma (walking distance to Maryland) is:

It's a "Little Free Library" on someone's front yard. You can take a book and leave a book at your leisure. It's just such a charming concept.

Unfortunately, at the same time, poverty is a reality here. If I walk the opposite direction of my hipster neighborhood, I don't exactly feel the safest. Many areas of D.C. are like this, one minute you can find affluence and another your heart can break over what you see.

My first week was sightseeing and I got a good deal of that in! There are a couple of interesting things I haven't checked out yet, but I'm just waiting for a weekend with beautiful weather to do so!

This past week was my first interning with World Vision. So far, I am the happiest here than I have ever been in a professional setting. First day on the job was an advocacy meeting right next door to the White House (1700 Penn) that my supervisor allowed me to participate in. I got taken out to lunch twice by staff members on our team and my fellow interns are some of the nicest colleagues I've ever had. I think I'm the only one amongst them not in a master's program and so I'm using this as a blessing to learn from their wisdom.

I'm going to check out a new church tomorrow so I hope that goes well. If it doesn't, there's another mass in the evening I will inquire about somewhere else. Last week, I went to mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. It may be the most beautiful church I've ever seen, which is saying a lot considering the many holy places I've been blessed to see.

I do have pictures, but I'm afraid we may have another "Rome" on our hand where they all get uploaded at once. I'm still sorting through some of those bad boys...

Speaking of Rome, I do miss the eternal city...It's been about a year since I studied abroad there, but it's fresh in my mind and always in my dreams. I'm so happy I chose to go there last year, what a blessing. I truly hope to return there someday, but will only do so on either someone else's dime or to take my own children to visit. Kind of a random end blerb, but I am just reflecting on how blessed I have been.