now seeking: advice!

It finally came: the official letter stating that I have been admitted to graduate school to study Adult and Higher Education!

Now that one part of my future is secure, I am seeking advice from those in the student affairs field.

This past week I interviewed for a graduate assistantship position at my university and when the interview ended, I asked the committee for advice for someone pursuing a student affairs career.

1) Remember perseverance. The infamous tale of a lot of rejection before an acceptance - don't get deterred from what you are truly passionate about. Allow your passion to shine through so that others may see it.

2) Be open to change. Just because something works one year doesn't mean it will work the next (or that it is the best option.) Be willing to try new things to find what works best.

3) Commit. Take the good with the bad (take them both and there you have the facts of life!). Really dedicate yourself to your profession so that you may get the most out of your experience!

I have a few months before I'll be in grad school so I thought this would be an opportune time to ask those of you out there involved in student affairs (grad students, those who just started their careers, or seasoned professionals) for any advice you could offer up to me! I know every person has had a different experience from being in different departments, at different schools, or from our own personal backstories. I look forward to hearing (and learning) from you all!

xoxo erikah

the truth about growing up

I spent the better part of my teenage years (and my college years) dreading 'growing up.' My 18th birthday was nothing more than another year, a year that I didn't feel any more like an adult. With each candle added to my cake, I found myself Peter Panning more and more, clinging to my youth as much as possible.

At 22 I found myself graduated, unemployed, and lost to an indescribable degree. I never looked forward to entering the 'real world' and, consequently, didn't adequately prepare myself for it.

It's been a year and I am now looking forward to the 'real world' as much as ever. What happened?
I started by asking myself why.

Why was I so afraid or in denial to grow up?
For me, I thought growing up meant becoming dull. I thought it meant never having fun again. I thought it meant that I'd become this robot, a shell of the vivacious and easy-going person I think myself to be. I focused so much on what being an adult wasn't instead of what it was.

'Growing up' is a part of life, a part to be embraced, a part of your life where you become a more developed, wiser, truer version of yourself. No one said growing up means you have to lose your child-like nature. It doesn't mean your creativity has to be stifled. It doesn't mean you have to forfeit everything you know and love.

Stop wasting time digging your heels in the ground - lift your feet and fly!

Explore. Learn. Grow...up :)

xoxo erikah