Speaking as Future-Mikhael, I've already begun plans on reaching Past-Mikhael via Time Machine. If scientists at the Large Hadron Collider can accelerate a particle to 99.9% the speed of light, then it won't be long until I can find a way to generate the 1.21 gigawatts necessary for time travel. Once I'm able to construct my own flux-capacitor, I have a list of things to tell Past-Mikhael: The 5 things I wish someone would've told me after I graduated college.
No shit. But, maybe not in the way you might think. As Past Mikhael, you're entering a tough job market due to the economy. This makes finding a job you're qualified for very difficult. But, that's not the point. The point is to just find a job. You need to find a reason to get up in the morning, put on pants and to stop marathoning the episodes of Angel and Gilmore Girls that are on permanent repeat.
So, find something you're completely overqualified for. As long as you find something. Use this as an opportunity to build strong references for when you do find that job you want and to show future employers you're better than the kids wasting months on their parents' couch and living off Funyons. Seriously Past Mikhael, just find a fucking job.
2. Figure out what you're gonna do
I know, easier said than done. But, as Past Mikhael you have at least 2 years on me to get this done. You've got a degree in something, so chances are you kind of know what you want. At the very least, you have a good idea of what you don't want.
This also becomes a lot easier if you're working that shitty job. The nice thing about shitty jobs is they afford you the time to daydream about what your ideal situation might be. I'm not saying you cement down a 10-year plan. I'm saying, you get an idea of what you can do with yourself. Unless, you know, that 16-hour work week at Jamba Juice is as high as you wanna fly.
3. Stay MOTIVATED
Just because you've moved back home and you don't have to cook or clean and all of your immediate needs are taken care of doesn't mean that you shouldn't be panicking and getting your grind on. Remember:
4. Maturity.
I could write volumes upon volumes on the topic of maturity and the road of self discovery that you must embark on starting now. But, instances such as these require a certain kind of tact and poetic revelation only available through a limited array of artistic mediums. With this in mind, to truly express the complexities and intricacies of social and mental phenomena that one must be able to grasp in order to achieve that functioning level of awareness I must present you with a song. A song which delicately brushes the webbing and dust off of age old truisms while simultaneously integrating contemporary theologies in its delicate handling of "self" and maturity. A song that expresses what Martin Heidegger himself had to stretch out over hundreds of pages to barely scratch the surface of and what many other great minds spent their lives trying to expatiate upon. I present to you, Dem Hoodstarz - get your grown man on:
5. Enjoy.
You are so fucking young. I mean, really, you are. You're not old just because you've graduated and you're younger sibling just started high school or whatever. You don't know anything about the world or anything about anything else for that matter. You still have so much to learn about yourself and how to live life. It may not seem like it, but it's true. Once you enter the work place, this fact might become a little clearer. But, for now, just take my word for it.
Enjoy.
Do work and stay on track and all that other bullshit but don't forget to take the time to enjoy. The days of your life that you get to spend carelessly dicking around are numbered. Make the best of them. Remember when you started High school? Not so long ago right? Well, the time from then until now is the time from now until you're 30. So, start enjoying you're waning days of youth IMMEDIATELY.
Yours,
Future Mikhael