Several years ago, my niece graduated from college and planned to pursue a career in either science or medicine. As a part of a graduation present, I gave her a sheet of paper with “Uncle Steve’s Hints for Success After College.” Here they are. Enjoy!
1. In college, you were told what you needed to do to graduate. From now on, everything in life is an elective, and you are designing your own major.
2. Never breathe what you’re drinking.
3. Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by stupidity (or ignorance, laziness, inattention, etc.).
4. Success is a matter of taking advantage of the opportunities that present themselves and the opportunities you make for yourself.
5. Consider the very real possibility that the hokey pokey is what it’s all about.
6. Take charge. Be the person who does what needs to be done.
7. Use sunscreen.
8. Stand out from the crowd. Don’t just follow the same path as everyone else.
9. Don’t believe everything you think.
10. Cultivate technical skills, because they will open doors for you.
11. Trust but verify.
12. Read both widely and deeply.
13. Watch all the Godfather movies. Twice.
14. Be creative by taking things that have been said and done before and combining them in a new way.
15. Play.
16. Don’t worry if you feel like an impostor, because almost everyone feels that way sometimes.
17. Back up your computer. Really.
18. Keep dancing!
(Incidentally, my niece is now midway through an MD-PhD program. I don’t know if my hints helped, but I’d like to think so.)
