Susan’s take:
In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy chants “There’s no place like home” as she clicks together the heels of her ruby-red slippers, and many of us would agree with her. Moving home after graduation may seem like a logical and desirable decision, but beware — it’s a trap!
Free food, free rent and free laundry services will zap your motivation to find a job. Interviewers will sense your comfortable complacency and will give the job to the hungry (figuratively and literally) candidate who needs the job to pay his rent. The longer you live at home, the longer you’re trapped by the security that living at home provides.
Unless you’re going to be the creepy guy living in his parents’ basement when you’re 30, you have to move out eventually, so why not start right away? Find roommates to live with, lower your expectations of what your first apartment needs to look like and start living on a very tight budget.
The adult world of living on your own comes with responsibilities and uncertainty, but it also comes with freedom and personal growth. I guarantee you the struggling years will teach you a lot about yourself, and you might look back on them more fondly than you realize. I know I do.
Susan’s bottom line: In the event of an imminent tornado, you should seek immediate shelter in your parent’s basement, but this should be seen as your option of last resort, Dorothy, not as your predetermined game plan.
Pat’s take:
Respectfully, I could not disagree more. Take on the financial responsibility of moving out of your house if and only if you are financially ready to pay the rent — and utilities — for the term of the rental. Doing otherwise will only encourage you to work 12 hours a day in crappy dead-end jobs to pay your bills and lose focus on finding the right starting point for your career. That starting point could be a very low paying job at a great company in your field of interest. It might even be an unpaid internship at a great firm, which will open the door to a great career when you are a star in your intern role.
I would add to this that I would also live at home if you can afford an apartment but would like to save for a year or two for a down payment on a condo or house so you don’t get caught in the real “trap,” which is paying rent for the next 10 years.
If you’re as committed to your career as I want you to be, you’ll be working a lot. You’ll want to stay (or get) in good shape, so you’ll be spending time on fitness. And you’ll want a dynamic social life, so you’ll be out with your friends at night. You may also travel for your job. How much time will you really be in that apartment anyway? Answer: not much.
If you do live at home, have an honest conversation with your parents about the rules, if any, now that you are an adult. Buy your own food. Cook your own food. Clean your own room. Act like a responsible adult, not a high school kid.
And, when you’re ready to launch — launch.
I say this all with one caveat. If you’re still there in 36 months, ignore everything I have just said here, and follow Susan’s advice immediately. Set a reminder in your phone for three years from today — and “launch” immediately and fearlessly if you’re still there. It’s time.
Pat’s bottom line: Do not take on the financial responsibility of a lease until you are ready. Living at home isn’t your dream come true, but it’s not the end of the world to live there for a little while.
Are you transitioning from college to career or working in your first job after graduation? If so, we’d love to answer any question you may have related to career success. Send your first name, school, and/or employer to AskPatandSusan@gmail.com and we’ll try to address your question in a future article.
Filed under: VOICES FROM CAMPUS Tagged: Dorothy, Dr. Susan Davis-Ali, first job, living at home, parents, Patrick O’Brien, post-grad life, rent