This is a sponsored feature. All opinions are 100% from Her Campus.
In the hustle and bustle of your college workday, it can be easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. Studying for an important midterm or planning your sorority’s philanthropy event can seem like huge deals—but in the greater scope of your college career (and in your life in general), they’re just small blips on the radar. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t invest yourself in all that you do, but if you want to be the kind of girl that’s going places in the more meaningful sense, you’ll need to take a step back and make sure you’re going in the right direction—to ensure success and happiness way beyond the four years you spend in the college bubble.
We teamed up with FIAT, the ultimate embodiment of innovation and affordability, to bring two inspiring bloggers (women that are most certainly going places!) to College Fashion Week in Atlanta and Boston. They traveled in the All-New 2016 FIAT® 500X Crossover, a vehicle with innovation, functionality and Italian style. Talk about the cool-factor. Want to be the kind of girl that’s going to excel in all of her adventures? Read on for our favorite tips.
Photograph by Christopher Huang
1. Have a mantra
If your current college mantra is “But first, coffee,” think again. Having an important quote or saying that you can turn to in times of stress (or even when you just need a boost of motivation) is important. Kristen, the blogger behind Boston Fashionista, loves this quote from Alice Paul, a famous suffragette: “When you put your hand to the plow, you don’t let go until you get to the end of the road.” Kristen says, “Basically, it’s kind of like finish what you’ve started.” Samantha, who started the blog The Samantha Show, prefers a mantra that is all about keeping calm: “Accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change things I can and the wisdom to tell the difference.”
2. Know what your dream job looks like
You don’t have to have a concrete five-year plan the moment you step on campus—but as you progress through college, you should start to figure out what your dream job may look like. We don’t mean you need to know exactly which company or even industry—but you should finalize the answers to questions like: Do you like working with people? What would you describe as “meaningful work?” What kind of difference do you want to make in the world? You’ll figure out the specifics as you go, but it will help to start outlining what you want out of a job.
Photograph by Christopher Huang
3. Get a role model
Having someone you look up to is a great way to keep yourself on track. It could be anyone you aspire to me—a relative, a professor or even a celebrity. Samantha’s role model is her mom: “She’s really confident, she’s smart, she’s resilient.” For Kristen, it’s Hillary Clinton! Read up on your role model’s history—how did she get to where she is now? Her path could provide major inspiration for yours.
4. Honor your bucket list
It’s never too late to make a college bucket list—but you should put things other than “streaking in the library” on it! Whether you’re a first semester freshman or a seasoned senior, write down a list of goals you hope to accomplish in college and beyond—and yes, you can put fun stuff too. But you should also add important things, like “connect with a mentor in your industry” or “go to a networking event every month.” Whenever you’re feeling down, you can look back on your list to see all that you’ve accomplished so far, and motivate yourself to do even more! On Samantha’s bucket list? “Skydive, attend New York Fashion Week and go to Europe—I’ve never been to Europe,” she says. Kristen says, “I would love to see the pyramids in Egypt with my grandmother and then write a book about it.” We have no doubt that these girls will reach their dreams!
Photograph by Christopher Huang
5. Hold on to wanderlust
You’re young and full of energy—stagnancy should be your worst nightmare. If you want to be the kind of girl that’s going places—you need to physically go places! Whether you’re backpacking around Asia or planning the ultimate road trip in your All-New 2016 FIAT 500X Crossover (in yellow please!), traveling is one of the best things you can do to broaden your horizon, reevaluate goals and become a more thoughtful person. Kristen loves Boston, but she’d also love to travel more. Her top pick? “Bocas Del Toro, Panama,” she says. “It’s amazing. It’s totally out there and kind of off the grid and it’s really sort of undiscovered.” As for Samantha, she would take her FIAT anywhere and everywhere: “I would go everywhere—I’d probably first maybe to the beach since I could use some beach paradise in my life,” she says.”
We know that you’ll definitely go places if you put in a little effort while still in school. There’s SO much you can accomplish in college—so get going and see what you can do!