Congratulations are in order for hundreds or even thousands of students graduating at this academic year’s end. From kindergarten to college level, there are students from all walks of life, with all sorts of ambition, all happy to be moving on to the next phase of their lives.

I wish everyone well. While the kindergarten and primary school students are a long ways off from going out on the world, young people graduating from high schools and the community college can anticipate the meaning of “commencement”.

The following are some thoughts I wish I had back in the day when graduation couldn’t come fast enough for me. Going out on the world is such an eye-opener when one considers what it means. For some, it means going out on your own. Parents will say you are a man or woman now; you have to start providing for yourself, or at least contribute to your own upkeep. If you have the ambition to pursue further studies to build a career as a professional or business person, you have to look at the ways and means, pros and cons to get the necessary support. Some are fortunate to get scholarships, or have parents willing to foot the bill. I’d like to share a little insight with all young persons, regardless of what plans are after graduation.

#1. Make up your mind to take on adult issues. These are issues that affect everyone, but now that you are expected to make your own decisions and choices, you have to take responsibility for your own life. These issues will include your economic wellbeing, personal health, relationships, the pursuit of success and happiness. Life and money are intertwined in today’s world. You’ll need to earn and manage your own dollars, with common sense. Bear in mind that the cost of living is not only the price of goods and services like food and telephone, but also the dues one has to pay in society; the taxes, tithes, and other moral and financial obligations that become part of our lives when we take on the responsibilities of adulthood.

#2. Practice Strategic Planning. Learn what it is and apply it to your life. Some people will call it time management, but there’s a school of thought that doesn’t believe that time can be managed. But you’ll need to set yourself some goals and a map of how you would achieve them. This could include your career plan, family planning, and future planning- like how you want to spend your life when you’re older. Imagine yourself five, ten, fifteen, twenty years from now. What would you like to have achieved by then? What sort of legacy do you want to leave at the end of your life’s journey? Since no one can control the future, your strategic plans are subject to revision after periodic assessments.

How much you achieve will depend on various factors including how much help you get along the way, and what effort you make with your own will and determination. Don’t compare your success with that of others because everyone has his or her own journey even though we may all walk the same road.

#3. Live an honest life. Sometimes it’s difficult to understand how honesty can be the best policy when honest people get punished for being themselves. Honesty is about being true to yourself, and to others. Honesty may not make you the most popular person in the crowd, but you’ll stand “like a tree planted by rivers of water”. You’ll not be moved by the things of the world that you know are unjust, untrue and unhealthy to the mind, body and soul. Honesty is the opposite of hypocrisy. Don’t be a hypocrite because hypocrisy doesn’t bear good fruits. Hypocrites cause more problems in the world than anything else. Always try to know where you stand, and stand firm.

#4.Trust God. This is by no means the least of the things you need to do when you go out on the world. I leave it for last because it’s the most important. Trust in God is about having faith. And you’ll need to have a lot of faith. Experience doesn’t bear on trees. You’ll have to have faith to take risks and dare to do things you’ve never done before, go places you’ve never been before, and confidence that you’ll be the better for it.

You’ll need to faith to learn the things that are not taught in school, college or university. You’ll need more than a certificate or a degree because these do not guarantee happiness. You’ll need to have God watching your back, guiding your footsteps and sharpening your eyesight. You’ll need to have faith when you make mistakes like everyone does, and need to get up and keep going despite those who would like to see you stuck in your mistake mode forever. You’ll need to have faith to admit when you’ve gone wrong, and not limit your progress by living in denial. Faith is required to navigate one’s way through this push and pull world. As Bob Marley says, “Life is one big road with lots of signs, so when you’re riding through the ruts, don’t complicate your minds”. Faith helps to keep things simple.

Welcome to the real world!

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