Valuable Advice

Tonight, I was hanging out with my friend Stephen.

Stephen at an art exhibit, Toronto, December 2014

Stephen works as a Corporate Man, but more than that, he runs Lex Magazine and he is in the process of making a documentary on homelessness in Ottawa, Canada. He also seems to do a bunch of other things on the side. He's a busy guy. Still more than all of that, Stephen is a good friend and I can normally trust his advice. 

Stephen is older - about 10 years older to be more specific. He has a real Corporate job, a nice car and expensive hobbies that he can actually afford to finance. I met Stephen through a friend. Over the three years I've known this typically bearded man, I've gone to him for advice and harsh realities time and time again. He's that kind of guy. 

Today we walked around downtown Toronto, took some photos, sat on some fake grass. It was a relaxing evening. The weather was lovely - warm with a cool breeze. We searched for outdoor sculptures and good light. Stephen kept commenting on how everyone in Toronto was beautiful. We made some jokes, but mostly I was quiet. I had mentioned to Stephen before that I had been struggling lately. Post-university life has been confusing and I have been feeling very lost. So, it was that kind of quiet evening. It was nice though. 

Upon departing, I asked Stephen what he did between high school and higher education, and then between higher education and his career today. He reassured me that it was normal to feel a little lost, the job market was very competitive, and job searching could be hard. However, the best thing he said to me tonight was as follows (well, paraphrasing), 

You have to treat your job search like a real job. From 9 to 5, your job is to find a job. It's going to be hard, but that's what you're going to need to do. 

So there you have it, from the man himself.