Loxosceles

I posted this as a comment at Ask the Readers: Advice for College Grads over at Get Rich Slowly. The question: what financial advice would you give a recent or soon-to-be college grad?

When you’re unemployed, and interviewing for jobs, remember that the light at the end of the financial tunnel does not come when you start your job. Not even when you get your first paycheck, since that check will be paying last month’s bills. It takes a couple of paychecks, even a couple of months, to get a comfortable cash flow going. Resist the urge to celebrate too early!

Ask. Negotiate. Do not wait for perks, raises, or fun assignments to be handed to you. While you wait, they are being given to people who had the guts to ask.

Do not buy lots of stuff to fill up your empty first apartment. Your future self does not want your poor ass student self picking out furniture.

Similarly: when you buy stuff, consider its whole life cycle. What will you do when the item goes out of fashion? When you give up that hobby? When you move? Go through a couple of moves and you’ll realize that every time you are trashing stuff that you once thought was worth spending money on.

Career-wise, figure out what you WANT to do, not what you feel like someone with your major should do. Remember there are always more opportunities in the world than anybody has thought to tell you about.

Develop a hobby that could, theoretically, pay the bills. This may become an alternate career path, OR you may be able to blend your expertise here with expertise in your regular field. Similarly, if you change majors or careers, don’t forget that your former field left you with skills that are still useful in future jobs. Real world jobs/careers/opportunities are rarely contained within exactly one field.