My Freshman Year of Life was 2018, when my field placement turned into an actual job, and the addition of a paycheque made my work a lot more stressful and a lot less fun. All self-imposed, by the way. I had the time of my life churning out work during the placement, but when that paycheque hit, I felt I had set too much of a precedent for myself - and I had. I burned out from the stress about 8 months later. Nothing like burning out at 21 to force you to re-evaluate your life.
“38 essays from top millennial writers on how they survived their first years out of college—a book conceived and promoted by a groundbreaking crowdsourcing startup. Freshman Year of Life tells the truth about life after college graduation. But this isn’t your standard step-by-step guide to landing that interview or surviving a long distance breakup with your college sweetheart, though there are stories on both these topics. Freshman Year of Life is a collection of essays from top millennial voices that have been there before, wish they’d known some things they didn’t, but made it through all the same. This is not your mother’s first year out of college book, but a starker more inclusive portrayal of what it’s like to be out of school for people from all walks of life. These are the people recent grads turn to on the Internet to offer poignant witty advice or sly one liners about pop culture and politics, and these are the personal stories their social media followers and fans haven’t heard. This anthology is full of advice, insights, and anecdotes from 38 millennial role models’ lives, the real stories that show just how disillusioning, hilariously embarrassing, and self-revelatory the transition to the adult world can be. Readers will delight in the honest and down to earth tone these authors take when looking back on their first years out of college, and will find it easier to tackle adulthood on their own because of it.”
These essays were short and a nice reminder to take a step back from the grind to make sure that what you are doing is in your best interest. I didn’t learn anything mind-blowing, but it’s good to remember both how lucky I was to be employed immediately upon graduation but also that the problems I face as a young person in the workplace are real. Sometimes it’s hard to act like you know what you’re doing at the office when you still go to your parent’s home on the weekends to do laundry. It’s hard to trust your own ideas and the feeling in your gut that tells you not to do something, or to push for your right to work in a healthy and safe environment, when you’re the youngest (by far) in the room. Office politics are real. Sometimes people are who they say and sometimes they’re not. Unfortunately, these are only things that can be learned by making a fool of yourself, being thrown under the bus by people you thought were your friends, or during a painful moment of clarity while you cry in your cubicle.
Not that I speak from experience.
Overall, it was a fast read and some of the essays were great. Other reviews pointed out that a lot of them had to do with moving to New York City or Los Angeles, and the self-realization that comes with discovering their dream of becoming a writer. It’s true - and once that move to NYC or LA happens, the rest of essay usually reads like a script for the young artist making it in the big city. Those essays were not the gems in this book. Good thing there are 38 to choose from.
The best include one on saving your money even after you get that first “real” job - you need an emergency fund. Another reminds the reader that chancing love is worth it. Another details the time the author shit in her sundress.
I didn’t say the authors were all talented.
Just kidding, it was hilarious.
The moral of these stories can be summed up in one sentence: Be humble, be smart with your money, be kind, be patient, and do you.
Decent life advice. 3 stars, because the good essays balance the mediocre.
Happy reading,
Holly
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