My alma mater celebrated its commencement last weekend. It has been six years since I walked the stage and received my college diploma. Here are six things I’ve learned in the past six years. 

You probably won’t work in the field you majored in.

Only a handful of my classmates are working in journalism. Many of us went into marketing, some continued their education in graduate school, and others went a completely different direction like social work or public health. 

I’m now the senior marketing copywriter for an education company. This doesn’t mean the time I spent earning my journalism degree was wasted. I actually use the things I learned every day. 

Strong writing skills are a must for copywriting, but I also learned how to ask questions, pay attention to details, and think critically. These are all helpful skills to have in the marketing field.

Your plans aren’t going to pan out exactly the way you envisioned them. 

If my life had gone according to plan, I’d be living in D.C. and working for an organization like NPR. I wanted to be a journalist who traveled regularly and knew lots of interesting people. Instead, I’m happily married, I own a house, and I’m an aunt. This lifestyle allows me to spend lots of time with family and friends, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. 

You’ll never stop missing the meal plan.

Say what you will about cafeteria food, but having all of your meals planned and prepared for you is a luxury. I didn’t realize how much I would miss dining hall food until it was too late. 

Yes, the meal plan was expensive, but at least the food I paid for was already cooked and ready to eat. I’ve spent hours meal planning, grocery shopping, and preparing food over the past six years. At first, trying new recipes was fun, but now it’s just another chore that I have to do at the end of a long workday.

Whenever we stay in a hotel, I always make sure it includes free breakfast because it takes one more decision off my plate. There’s nothing more luxurious than having someone cook for you. 

It’s okay if you don’t do something big and important with your life.

The marketing message for colleges is strong—earn your degree so you can do something great with your life. Become a business leader, invent a new technology, save lives in the health care field, travel the world, etc. 

But you don’t have to do any of those things to live a good life. College focuses on preparing you for one facet of life—your career. My job is just a small part of who I am, and it’s low on my priority list of things that matter to me. Don’t misunderstand me—I still show up to work each day and give it my best, but I’m not basing my happiness or satisfaction on my job. That’s based on my values—spirituality, family, and friends. 

You don’t have to be making six figures or live in a mansion or drive a brand-new car to be successful. You don’t have to climb the corporate ladder or start your own business. Live by your values, and everything else will fall into place. 

Your body is going to change a lot in your 20s. 

When you graduate from high school and are preparing to go to college, everyone warns you about the freshman fifteen. That was never an issue for me. I walked several miles each day just to get to class or the dining hall and worked out a few times a week. 

Your body really changes when you enter the workforce. You go from walking everywhere and having plenty of time for exercise to sitting at a desk for 8+ hours a day. You have to relearn how to take care of yourself because activity isn’t built into your schedule unless you work a physically demanding job. 

You won’t have everything figured out—and you don’t have to. 

Before you even don your cap and gown, people ask what you’re going to do after graduation. 

I’ve always been a planner and had a job lined up that started just a few days after commencement, but that isn’t the case for everyone—and that’s okay. You don’t have to have it all figured out. It has been six years, and I still don’t have it figured out. 

I’m taking life one day at a time and learning to go with the flow. 

How long has it been since you graduated from high school or college? Share some of the lessons you’ve learned with me in the comments.