Choice angst. Is choice paralyzing college grads in their job search?

I started this posting a few weeks ago. Each time I go back to it, I can’t seem to find the here’s-what-you-can-do type of advice to proffer.  I decided to explore the idea, provide some examples with a few lessons learned but dispense with the advice and let readers help each other. Please comment. Share your thoughts. Help your peers.

Barry Schwartz, a psychology professor at Swarthmore College said this (I’m paraphrasing) in an interview a few weeks back:  University student health centers/psychology centers are bursting at the seams. This cohort of college students are the most privileged kids. They’re not anymore screwed up (he did say that) then those that came before them. What’s going on? His conjecture is that today’s college students despite being the most talented and educated simply do not know what to do. They’ve been given every opportunity yet are terrified to graduate and afraid to make a decision because decisions limit choice.

Does walking through one door mean another door shuts? I suppose it does. We make decisions every day that limit choice yet we’re not paralyzed but it. 

A mini-psychology lesson

As a marketer I understand that both a rational and an emotional system guide and direct behavior/decisions. Often these two systems compete with each other.  When our rational system is faced with too much information/too many facts to keep track of, our emotions will drive behavior. We then accuse ourselves of making an emotional decision. Yet, without an emotional system what happens is we analyze and analyze, analyze some more to the point where all options appear the same.  We’re stuck and can’t make a decision.  Eventually a choice is made but then a sense of regret comes over us. Did I make the right choice?

So, what is going on with college students and their job search?

During your junior or senior year of college, you’re faced with having to make a decision about your future. Do you go on to graduate school? Do you go into the workforce? If so, what career field? What are the job prospects in that field? Is that what I’m really meant to do? And, for most of your life you’ve been told to follow your passion. When you do you’ll wind up happy. Find the ideal job. If you don’t, then you’ll be unfulfilled and unhappy.

OMG! That’s a lot of pressure. Afraid to make a choice you’ll regret, the anxiety builds and you become paralyzed in your job search.

There are things college students need to know to jump start their job search.

1.  Most people fall into their careers. For example, when two of my closet friends were in angst of not knowing what to do with their post-college life, a professor asked them to assist in a research study. They never did that kind of work before and the professor was very well known in his field. A bit of fear set in but saying no didn't seem to make sense to them at the time. A good thing. A semester of conducting research, gathering and analyzing data changed their lives. They are now world recognized sociologists.Not a career that either of them had considered. Lesson: Be open to opportunities. 

 2. Sometimes you can’t know and you need to trust your gut feeling. When you become overwhelmed with too much information (rational system) you need a fast and simple way (emotional system) to cut through the noise. When there are many variables to consider, thinking through them all becomes a monumental task, so you need some other way to pick out the best strategy. And that’s where the gut comes in. Lesson: You have a well-developed gut instinct. Use it. Oh. Your cohort will have at least 10-12 different jobs and 3-4 different careers.

3. No ideal job or career exists. I happen to have the ideal career for me.  I work with college students. (That’s the best part.) I make my own hours. I can live anywhere I want. I report to myself. I worked very hard to get to this place in my career. But, I have friends who simply do not understand this and thought I was crazy for leaving the more traditional workplace. Lesson: Think about jobs as skills builders. What skills do I have? What skills do I need to develop to eventually create the ideal job or career.  

4. I’ve learned this from my own experience—certain things I care about and worry over and the rest I’ve learned to let go. It helps me at least think I am in charge of my choices.  Lesson: There are many things you can let go of and other things you can control in your job search.

Oops, I think I did have some advice to offer. But I would love to hear from all of you. What's keeping you stuck in your job search? What advice do you have for your peers?