2 New Rules to Live By

I am so happy that this semester my sweet friend and roomie, Samara, came back to campus. After she studied remotely in the fall and we had been apart for around ten months, it has been so lovely to see and spend time with her again. She is funny, crazy smart, and always down to hear me ramble about anything and everything. During one of my rambling sessions this past week, I was spilling to her about all the things happening in my life including exciting interviews, uncertainties about job and internship applications, and having to contact departments on campus to ask for things I normally wouldn’t. From our conversation, we came up with two new rules that I was going to have to live by. I have since applied these rules to other situations in the few days since I have adopted them into my life and everything has turned out beautifully. Here’s the break down:

• There will always be “what ifs”

  • Samara noticed that when I was trying to make a decision, I was always focusing on the “what ifs.” What if I don’t get the CA placement I want? What if they don’t want to give me an interview after I cancelled the first one? What if they don’t want to grab dinner with me? What if, what if, what if. Finally, she told me that there are always going to be “what ifs” in life no matter what you do. Instead of holding yourself back, embrace the “what ifs,” accept them as a natural part of decision making, and continue to be a badass and go after the things you want anyway.

• Always reach out

  • A couple weeks ago, I cancelled the interview I had for the senior docent position in the admissions office. I was super stressed that week, bogged down with homework, and in the moment, I felt like I couldn’t handle adding yet another thing to my plate. However, in the couple of weeks following my cancelled interview, I immediately regretted my decision. Seeing other students give tours reminded me of why I applied for the job in the first place and the passion I have for working with younger students. I wanted the job but was feeling too proud to reach out to the admissions office after I had cancelled my previous interview. Thankfully, my other lovely roommate Taylor pushed me to email the admissions office and tell them what I was thinking. Low and behold, a few weeks later I got an interview to be added to the waitlist for the position! While I have not heard back as to my status on the waitlist, I am still proud that I put myself on their radar and that I won’t leave Denison regretting not trying.

  • The same day that I interviewed for the docent position, I had to email the first-year office regarding the acceptance of my position as a June-O staff member. I was going to have to accept or decline the position before I heard back from the two other summer internships I applied for; I really wanted to accept the job but I also didn’t want to leave them hanging if I were to get one of the other internships. I sent the student coordinators a quick email, expecting them to get back to me saying that it would be best for me just to decline the offer. However, they granted me an extension so I would have time to hear back from all my options! I’m so glad I decided to contact them instead of assuming their answer and declining the position without knowing the options I had. As the old adage goes, “ask and you shall receive.”

  • Since then, when I was anxious to reach out to a friend I hadn’t seen in a while to grab dinner, Samara reminded me of rule number two and I had no choice but to send them a text. Needless to say, I had nothing to be nervous about and everything went great.

These rules may sound simple, but they are reminders of all the times I was uncertain or took risks that turned out to be great. Remembering and living by these will give me the motivation to go after the things I want, no matter who I have to contact or how uncertain things are.

“Better an oops than a what if.”

“If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.”

• anxiety
• internships
• interviews
• jobs
• life
• nerves
• relax
• rules