“Do One Thing Every Day That Scares You”

What. A. Break. This winter break takes the cake for busiest time of the year. After classes ended I dove right into holiday prepping. Coming from an Italian family means lots of cooking, baking, and Christmas parties. After Christmas I took a bit of time to relax but as soon as 2016 hit I was packing up my car and racing (figuratively of course) up to the Capitol City for the William & Mary D.C. Seminar program. I got to travel all round my favorite American city to learn about political polarization in Congress.

Despite getting a little lost (okay, a lot lost) on the Metro while heading back to my temporary home, this experience was amazing. I got to meet some pretty stellar people and absorb all of their insider knowledge. There were also loads of amazing networking opportunities, which is always great for a college senior. Even though I had the “no new friends” mentality (don’t judge, it was only a 10 day seminar and I’m a second semester senior) the other students in my seminar were so fun to hang out with and are now in my arsenal of great friends.

So at this point you’re probably thinking, “Katie, what’s up with your title? It doesn’t seem relevant at all.” Even though the DC program was a valuable and illuminating opportunity, it kept reminding me that I still don’t know what I want to do with my life.  I know, I know, a college senior stressing about the future seems more like a normal thing than a completely terrifying one, but for us seniors it’s pretty darn scary. Seeing all of these people with interesting jobs they love kept reminding me at my uncertain future.

After a ten minute phone conversation with my outstandingly patient mother, I realized that pretty much no one has it all figured out by the time they’re my age. (If you do, I’d love to hear your secret). Applying for jobs is always going to be a game of Russian Roulette, sending out your resume is always going to make your heart sound like it just ran a 5k, and composing a cover letter is always going to make you want to shut down Word and turn on Netflix. Once you overcome the fear that is in your way of applying to all kinds of cool jobs you want, but might not be 100% qualified for, you’ll feel pretty liberated. Will I get that senior writer position at a newspaper? Doubtful. But, hey, at least I tried! My piece of life advice for you today? Don’t be afraid to do something scary. It might be worth it.

*Quote by Eleanor Roosevelt

**Photo courtesy of scandal.wiki