Many of you at SDSU are on the cusp of graduating from college. This event is a period at the end of a run-on sentence known as “life-as-you-know-it.” The graduation ceremony is the endgame of a life spent within school and its built-in systems. Once the paperwork is finalized, the credits tallied and the diplomas received, a new and exciting chapter of life opens before you.

Some of you may have a clear path to personal fulfillment, but I’d wager some of you are less than enthused to travel beyond the walls of SDSU. The horizon in view might look clouded and career options may seem bleak.

Adults will snarkily refer to this as “the real world,” but I’m willing to wager that most of you have already gotten a taste of this. Rising tuition and job experience expectations matched with dwindling opportunities are often the nature of our post-modern world. If you’re like me, you might be hyperventilating right now.

I’ll take the opportunity to tell you: take a deep breath, look introspectively, and marvel at the sheer absurdity of options that lay ahead of you. Levity is a tool to fight against uncertainty in life. The ability to manage the wilds of the world is key to overcoming the plights of society.

If you’ve found religion, solace might exist in your house of worship. For an analytically minded person, answers may lie in the acceptance of the chaos of the world. There is no situation that is hopeless and no life unredeemable with the vast array of options available in this world. In the face of adversity, personal conviction and determination can easily overcome any shortcomings in life. Like many young adults in America, I attribute most of my personal mantras to popular TV shows.

Lisa Simpson, a character from the formerly famous Simpson family, prescribed a succinct guideline to life: “self-improvement can be achieved, but not with a quick fix. It’s a long, arduous journey of personal and spiritual discovery.”

Your current status in life is only one of many experiences that will define you. Take each situation you face and be critical of the decisions you make. Part of your journey is the joy of self-discovery and regality of changing oneself and the circumstances of life. Keep your well being at the forefront and always be mindful of what you want and need.

There’s no need to act selfishly, but not understanding yourself is a key to failure. It’s paramount that life be perilous and ever changing, as it’s the pure essence of the human experience. And hell, if all else fails, pour yourself a drink and relax. There’s always tomorrow.