Hey Friend,
I know, I know. It’s (probably) not Sunday, but bear with me for a moment.
This is a quick introduction to something that might make your week just a little better. Here’s the scoop.

Sunday Letters is a new weekly curation of the top 3 articles/resources for navigating life after college — topics ranging from how Elon Musk interviews, to what jobs will exist in 2030, to good-ol’ insights on adulting. We’re sharing this with you because you recently inquired about our newest programs, so we’re sending this along as an added bonus. Before I share anything else, here’s a quick backstory on how this began.

I’m Victor….
And I’m one of the co-directors at Experience Lab. Over the past eight years, I’ve been working in higher education. But with a twist…

I got my start because I was frustrated with traditional forms of ongoing learning. I was considering an MBA, but instead I designed my own Master’s by completing 12 experiences with 12 companies in 12 months. That year changed my life and ever since, I’ve been working with brilliant friends from Stanford, UC Berkeley, Northwestern, and MIT to design curriculum and programs for students to launch their careers through experience.

Why Sunday Letters?

If you’re receiving this note, it’s because you’ve either recently graduated or you’re navigating your career. The team and I have been in your shoes and we know the value of finding helpful tips, articles, videos, and resources along the journey.

So each Sunday, we’ll be scouring the web and summarizing each article. You can decide if you want to click in and learn more, or just keep skimming.

Sound good?  Great, let’s get started.

 

On Graduation

Are you feeling a mix of things about graduating? If you are, you are certainly not alone. College senior Jacquie Lee writes about her doubts and anxieties leading up to college graduation. She questions her choices in her chosen major and her post-grad options. In her desperate need to find some answers, she interviews Jeffrey Selingo, the author of the guidebook There Is Life After College, who highlights the undervalued importance of “soft skills,” namely, “humility, good communication skills, team-building skills and problem-solving skills” for young college grads looking to land a desirable job. NPR.

 

On Reflection

If you are a current college senior, you are probably starting to reminisce about your time as an undergrad. We tend to feel nostalgia at the good times in the past, and often choose to overlook the harder and more challenging times we’ve overcome. In this opinion piece, a college senior, Stella, reflects on her trials and triumphs navigating college and looks back on her year spent studying abroad. We encourage you to reflect on your undergrad years, write down your thoughts and share them with your friends. Maybe even submit them to one of your school’s publications. Chances are, your thoughts are shared by many of your peers and will be appreciated by younger students just beginning their college careers. The Georgetown Voice.

Stella is an alum of our Experience Lab Fall 2019 cohort. Learn more about Stella’s and other Experience Lab Fellows’ experiences here.

 

On Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone

You might realize that as you step out of your university’s gates and into “the real world,” you are constantly faced with challenging situations where you have to take a leap — do something for the first time or something that scares you, in order to grow in your professional and personal life. In today’s world, “without the skill and courage to take the leap, we can miss out on important opportunities for advancement.”

“You might discover that what you initially feared isn’t as bad as you thought.” For many of us, activities such as public speaking, giving a presentation at school or at work, taking a new job, or going on a first date may seem daunting in the days and moments leading up to them, and we try to find excuses to get out of them. However, we often find that once we’ve done it, it really is not as terrifying as we thought it would be and it might even turn out to be an enjoyable experience. The author writes in the article, “In the end, even though we might feel powerless in situations outside our comfort zone, we have more power than we think. So, give it a go.”  Harvard Business Review.

 

Thanks for being here!
More soon,
Victor & The Experience Lab Team