Little fish, gigantic pond. That’s how I felt on my first day of classes my freshman year of college.
People sometimes can’t overcome the “what if” mentality or assume that they are going to hate something before you even give it a try. I’ve had to take MANY leaps of faith that some wouldn’t even consider. Take my college living arrangements for example: I live at a cooperative sorority of over 50 women. For some, the thought alone of living with 50 other women would make them turn away and say, “who would want to subject themselves to that?” Well, I took the leap of faith and now I have a gigantic network of women all over the United States who want nothing but the best for me and a group of friends I wouldn’t trade for anything. If I hadn’t taken that leap, I wouldn’t now be the president of the entire house and have some killer experience to put on my resume.
Finding a job in general while you’re in college is a huge pain in the butt. Your high school experience of working fast food or playing a sport made you big man on campus then, but now that you’re in the “big kid world”, you went from big fish to small fish just like that. Stepping out of your comfort zone and networking at career fairs or applying for numerous jobs can be really scary. I remember my first career fair; I felt like the biggest idiot in the entire world. Wanting to pursue a career in the agriculture field, I realized pretty quick that companies don’t just want someone who has a passion for the field. You have to know your stuff and have real-world experience in the ag industry. I grew up on a farm, but I still had so much to learn. After my first career fair my freshman year, I wasn’t offered any internships right off the bat but that’s okay! Want to know why? Because I took a leap of faith and learned from that experience! That day may not have had the best outcome (yes, I cried when I got home) but it helped me learn where I needed to improve. From there, after enough networking and digging, I was able to find the perfect fit and now I work for NuTech Seed, a company that I love more than anything. Their values in success, enjoyment, and family perfectly align with my own personal morals, so getting the opportunity to represent such a genuinely good company has been an amazing experience. Everything happens the way it’s suppose to, but you can’t expect things to fall into place without putting yourself out there first.
Through all of this, a common theme that I’ve experienced/learned is to just go for it. Want to join that club? Go for it! Want to apply for that job? Go for it! If you live your life worried about the what if’s, you can’t live a fulfilling life. Sometimes things can seem really scary, like going to college, making friends, applying for jobs, and numerous other things in life. However, those leaps of faith can lead to some pretty amazing things. So college students and young ag professionals, take it from someone currently in your shoes: overcome your fears and just go for it!