SUCCESS: Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation

Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College GraduationNow that many UC Davis students have graduated, comes the big question: What’s next?  Our suggestion is to stay in your fine Davis apartment for the rest of your life, but we may be slightly biased in our love of Davis, CA. Lifehacker offers Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation. Here are a few of our favorites:

10. Keep Building and Maintaining Your Friendships

Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation

Making friends after college is hard, but meaningful friendships make a big difference on almost every aspect of your life for decades to come. So make an effort to stay in touch with the friends closest to you now and make new friends even as you get busy with work.

Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation8. Start Cooking for Real

Given the tiny (or nonexistent) kitchens most college students deal with and perhaps too much prior assistance from Mom & Dad restaurant, cooking isn’t a skill universal to college grads. Pick up some essential kitchen skills, learn how to make some basic meals and still stay within your food budget, and brush up on other top cooking tips you should know.

6. Find the Best Place to Live

Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation

After college, you have the freedom to go anywhere. You might want to stay where you are or move back to your hometown, which is fine too, but if you’re considering where to head to find a new job, check out our roundup of tips for finding the best place to live. If you do move to a new area, here’s how to easily settle down there—even if it’s an expensive city and you’ve got a limited budget.

5. Get Your Money in Order

Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation

Once out of college, your financial picture will probably change. Maybe you have student loans and other debt to deal with, no more support from your parents, and income that you have to budget. Here’s our guide to managing your finances and tackling debt. By the way, recent (and current) students can expect some unique breaks from the tax man. Keep this in mind when April 15 rolls around again and you can get some financial relief. Also, even though retirement might seem like a distant, vague event, now’s the best time to start investing for your retirement, even if you can put just a little aside.

Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation1. Think Beyond Work

Your career might be your main focus as you leave college, but remember that work isn’t everything either (and you don’t want to burn out). Go see the world, even on a budget or for free. Go on dates. Keep up your own creative side projects. Challenge yourself to see the world in new ways. (Yes, take the commencement speech to heart.) Life is like a video game, so spend your time and energy in the most important areas.

Congrats to all the grads!

Illustration by Tina Mailhot-Roberge.

Read the rest of the Lifehacker article here:  Top 10 Tips for Winning at Life After College Graduation.