The Class of 2020: things you should know after your graduation

Congratulations the class of 2020!

You have achieved a great milestone. The world is proud of you!

Graduation is one best feeling ever for everyone who has gone through the school system. Graduation comes with all the fanfare of completion, the commencement ceremonies, and collecting certification! It’s a remarkable end of campus life and grand entry into career life. This year 2020, the world is experiencing wreaking havoc due to the COVID-19 pandemic which has turned everything upside-down. The long-awaited graduations couldn’t be held— including yours. But hopefully, you will not get confused about the crisis because this is a tragedy that befell us all. But as, Homo sapiens, we are smart enough to make the best out of it. That is the hope for the whole world. Your generation is the largest and most empowered in the history of the human race. There is a lot of technology, knowledge and opportunities for you to tap into and turn things around. In the past decade, I registered three major graduations in my life; from high school to my bachelors and my masters. Like everyone else, I was very excited. I was all out looking for opportunities and seeking advice.

Last week, my two younger brothers graduated from high school in Sweden. I am happy for them because I have witnessed their progress. I still remember helping them with their handwriting and arithmetical operations. Looking at them, I was reminded of myself at that time. I was reminded of the aspirations and expectations that my classmates and I carried that day. Today, I feel obliged to share with you a few things I wish I knew when I was leaving college.

Life is a series of waves of struggle. The solution of one is merely the unlocking of another then another. This continues throughout life. Remember, you had struggled to write research papers, defend your thesis, paying school fees, and deliver a presentation and many more, and all you wished is to get done with a college life cycle. This is true to almost everyone in school because we think life after school will be much easier. The truth is nothing is easy. And by the way, whoever said, life is easy? I guess no one! Recently I was conversing with a friend from Sudan with whom we attended our Postgraduate Studies. When I inquired on how she’s holding up, she said, “It’s from struggle to hustle,” she continued, “Now days, I introduce myself as a certified hustler to sacrifice the status quo and get what I want.” This reminded me of the famous Portuguese phrase by a great African hero, Samora Machel, “A luta continua” which means the struggle will continue. Honestly speaking, the struggle will continue!

Everyone should have a cause to stand for. As a student or graduate, there must be a cause you care about and pursue during your lifetime. Some of us stand for education, human rights, health, peace, equality, or the environment. For example, Malala Yousafazi is an award-winning Pakistani Education advocate, especially female education. She stood up for this cause at a younger age and her impact of bettering the future is being felt. Malala has a powerful and inspiring story, but she was lucky to identify her passion early. This may not be the same story with everyone. Some people find it hard to understand what they truly care about. You find them trying to fit in every industry. That is okay! As long as you are in the process of figuring things out. There is nothing wrong with that. Having a cause will put a litmus test on your focus and guide you to carefully choose your industry of work.

Investing in yourself is the best form of investment. It generates a greater return. We live in the early stages of the Fourth Industrial Revolution where everything is evolving; the way we do business, the way we work and communicate, and the way we live. This is mainly due to technology which requires us to always be updated. The skill demand on labour markets is constantly changing with higher rates, some of which are not taught at school. Therefore, investing in yourself should be a top priority. This can be in a form of reading and writing more. I commit to reading at least one book in every month to challenge my intelligence. I was inspired by Bill Gates who is a vivid reader and his reading list or book recommendations are not limited to a specific area; that is something we should pay attention to as well. Avoiding unlived life and building a successful career in the 21st century requires one to become a deep generalist and a polymath. If you limit yourself to the few books which you read from your school library and course you studied, I am not sure that will be enough to place you in a competitive labour market that you’re joining. Additionally, the personal investment includes the financial aspect as well. Trade-offs will remain but rational utilization the financial resources are inevitable. Therefore, save and invest the little you earn in the early years of your career because it will pay off. Remember salary is never enough for anyone who ever worked as an employee. Creating multiple streams of income is necessary but this can be done by managing your personal finance wisely. This may include investing a business or building startups. Moreover, as a young graduate with more life ambitions, you should also prioritize your health. This extends from physical health to mental health as well. Many young professionals develop stress and depression which may lead to irrational decisions including drug addiction. Stress and depression can be developed from unemployment, personal disappointments, or maybe the loss of loved ones or property. To protect our mental health, we have to develop better health habits. Services like therapy should be included in this bracket should be needed. We all got a finite number of years to breathe, so invest early and wisely.

Your network is your net worth. Creating a professional network is crucial for building a successful career. This doesn’t mean to make more friends either online or offline; you will never need to make more friends in your life. All you need is to know at least 20% of the people in your industry or city because they have access to the 80% resource you might need to. Think about attending social events related to your cause taking place in your city or region. If this requires travelling; go for it. Most people misuse such opportunities. We focus on taking selfies and embracing our social media fans. Selfies should not be the result but should part of your networking process. Meet people, tell them what you stand for and why you may want them to connect with you. In case you need to develop a brief elevator pitch to catch the attention of the people, go for it. This resonates well with one of my new friends I met last February at Bole Airport as I transited to Entebbe. I hadn’t recognized her until she re-introduced herself with an amazing elevator pitch. She said, “Hey you must be Okash, I met you at African Blockchain Conference 2019 in Kampala.” That statement forced me to pay attention to her. She attended a panel discussion which I spoke at that conference and she told me how much she enjoyed a book,  The Fourth Industrial Revolution by Professor Klaus Schwab,which I recommended during my talk of that time. That was a nice trick to network. However, to catch someone’s attention at a networking event try to be specific and smart enough. Attending Events regionally is also a great deal. Changing the world requires partnerships; you need a diverse network to join for your cause. Travelling overseas and discovering new things might be a forward step for growth especially attending a conference or event. In 2018, I was at the Afrika Youth Connekt Summit in Kigali where I met valuable friends. Also, I was inspired by the countless youths from different parts of Africa seeking investors, and building synergies among the participants. Furthermore, seek the membership of creative or innovations hubs in your city, this is a great way to get to know and connect with like-minded people. Finally, join and apply for the change-makers’ networks and youth development opportunities. Always have it in mind that you are not alone in the cause you stand for, so find the youth-led organization in the area you are championing. Offer yourself and your time as a volunteer. This way, you contribute to building a better world.

Finally, I wish those few thoughts might help you regardless of which career you are pursuing. I wish I could give you more gifts than this blog for your graduation. That could be a copy of Be Fearless by Jean Case. I am sure we are now facing tough challenges that require being fearless and optimistic about the present and the future. And I hope that book would help you do so. By changing ourselves, we change the world.

Welcome to life after graduation and I hope you will make the best out of it.