给应届毕业生的18条建议

We recently asked netizens to tell us the best post-grad advice they’ve ever received. Here’s what they had to say:
最近，我们向网友做了个调查：大学毕业后，你收到的最好的建议是什么。以下是他们给出的答案：

1. Your major doesn’t have to define who you are in life.
你所学的专业并不能决定你人生的方向。
“As a liberal arts degree holder, the best advice I received from my dean was that my major didn’t define who I had to be in life.” — Es Tee Smith, Facebook
“作为一名文科毕业生，我从系主任那儿得到的最佳建议是：我的专业并不能决定我未来人生的方向。” ——埃斯·T·史密斯，脸书

2. The only thing you have to be is yourself.
你唯一要做的就是做你自己。

“The best advice I ever received came from ’90s pop god, Ethan Hawke, in Reality Bites: ‘Honey, the only thing you have to be by the age of 23 is yourself.’”— courtneys61
“我收到过的最好建议来自于90年代的流行巨星伊桑·霍克，他在电影《四个毕业生》中说：“亲爱的，在23岁之前，你唯一要做的就是做真实的自己。”——courtneys61

3. Put on your big girl pants.
别耍小孩脾气，成熟点。
“My sassy grammy said, ‘Alex, you just gotta put on your big girl pants, put on some lipstick, and accomplish your dreams. You got this baby girl. No one can hold you down. And if they try to, give them a swift kick in the ass.’” — alexandralmarth
“我时髦的祖母说过：’亚历克斯，你最好穿得成熟些，擦点儿口红，去实现你的梦想。你不再是小女孩的样子，就没有人能阻止得了你。如果他们想要这么做，你也应该一脚把他们踢开。‘”——alexandralmarth

4. You have to jump.
你一定要跳下去。

“You’re going to jump alone, with no one else beside you. But you’re GONNA jump. Just remember you don’t jump the same as everyone else. Your timeline isn’t theirs. They might land a big dream job in a month, and maybe you’ll get yours a year from now, or even 10 years. But you will get there. First though, you have to jump.” — MelisCapozio
“没有人在你身边的时候，你需要一个人跳下去。你一定得跳。记住，你要跳得与别人不一样。你的时间线与他们不同。他们可能一个月内就找到了理想的工作，而你可能需要一年，甚至十年之久。但你一定会找到的。不过首先，你一定要跳。 ——MelisCapozio

5. “You’re now your own personal brand. Be sure to market wisely.” — Margaret Aprison, Facebook
现在你就是你自己的品牌。一定要聪明地推销自己。——玛格丽特·艾普利森，脸书

6. No one really knows what they’re doing!
没有人真正清楚自己正在做什么！
“The last week of classes before graduation I had a meltdown, and my professor looked at me and said ‘no one actually knows what they’re doing. All of these adults you look up to, and admire, they’re all making this shit up as they go. You’re not all alone in this big scary world. I promise.’” — lailar
“毕业前上最后一周课的时候，我很沮丧，我的教授看着我说：‘实际上，没有人真正明白自己在做什么。你所敬仰并羡慕的那些成年人，他们做事情的时候也是这样。我可以肯定地说，在这个大千世界，并不是只有你一个人充满恐惧。’”——lailar

7. You are your biggest obstacle.
你是自己最大的阻碍。

“‘You are your biggest obstacle,’ spoken by the best teacher/friend I’ve ever had. She didn’t BS us but told us we are the only ones to blame if we don’t like our situation.” — lizv4367ed200
“我的一位良师益友说过：‘人最大的障碍是自己。’她没跟我们长篇大论，而是告诉我们，当我们对现状不满时，需要责怪的只是我们自己。”——lizv4367ed200

8. Despite your degree, don’t be above anything.
虽然你有高学历，但也不要眼高于顶。
“Even though you have a degree, you’re not above doing anything. Never turn down a job because you think you’re too good for it.” — Sarah Marie, Facebook
“尽管你有高学历，但也不要眼高于顶。不要因为觉得某个工作不值得你做而拒绝它”——莎拉·玛丽，脸书

9. Embrace the now.
拥抱当下。
“Everything is a stepping stone taking you on to bigger and better things, so embrace the ‘now’ and don’t get too worried that you’ll be stuck in one place. Those who are stuck in the same job are only stuck because they let themselves be.” — Lauren Keller, Facebook
“每件事情都是使你迈向更广阔更美好未来的垫脚石。所以要拥抱‘当下’，不要过于担心你可能被困在某个地方。被某个工作困住的人，只能是因为他们自愿被困。”——劳伦·凯勒，脸书

10."Always try to make the familiar strange and the strange familiar."—lydiag43095082e
总是努力把熟悉的变成陌生的，把陌生的变成熟悉的。——lydiag43095082e

11. No matter what, save 20% of your income.
无论如何，把收入的20%存起来。
“An older lady on a plane told me right before graduating: ‘Whatever your job, whatever your salary, save 20% of your income. It’s the first step to success.’ Old ladies on planes always have the best advice.” — jpa46b8aa91e
“毕业前有一次乘飞机，一位老奶奶告诉我：‘无论你工作好坏，无论你薪水高低，都要把收入的20%存起来。这是成功的第一步。’飞机上的老奶奶们总是有最好的建议。——jpa46b8aa91e

12. Keep busy in between employment.
不断就业。工作之余充实自己。
“If you’re having trouble landing a job straight out of school (like 99.9% of graduates these days), keep busy with things that’ll add to your resume: volunteering, internships, etc. It all helps, and it shows potential employers that you’ve got drive!” — Jessica Thi, Facebook
“如果你在离校后不能够很顺利地找到工作（像如今99.9%的毕业生一样），就不断做一些其他事情以充实你的简历，比如做志愿者、找实习机会等。这些都会对你未来有帮助，会使你潜在的雇主看到你很有干劲儿！” ——杰西卡·提，脸书

13. Newtwork.
人脉。

“My graphic design professor said ‘it’s all about who you know, so network as much as you can!’” — carleyc48360faa9
“我的平面设计课的教授说：‘这是个拼人脉的时代，所以你要尽你所能扩大你的人脉网络。”——carleyc48360faa9

14. Just apply.
不断投简历。
“Apply for that job, even if you think you aren’t qualified or if it requires a big move you aren’t sure you want to make, etc. Just apply because you never know what might happen, but if you don’t apply, you definitely won’t get the job.” — rachelnydeng
“只管投简历，即使你觉得无法胜任也没关系，即使它要求你做很大改变而你并不确定想这么做，也没关系。不断投简历吧，因为你永远不知道会发生什么；但如果你不投，你就肯定不会得到那份工作。” ——rachelnydeng

15. There is no such thing as failure.
根本就没有失败这回事儿。
“There is no such thing as failure, only learning experiences. So learn from the mistakes you make and make time for the things you love.” — MelanieLocke
“根本就没有失败这回事儿，都是学习经验的机会而已。从错误中学习，然后找机会做你喜欢的事情。”——Justgaby3

16. "No matter how you spend 'em...there's 24 hours in a day." —danyelllar
“不管你怎么过，每天都是24小时。”——danyelllar

17. Prove. Them. Wrong.
证明。他们。是错的。
“Don’t let anybody tell you you can’t. Prove them wrong.” — Justgaby3
“不要让任何人有机会说你不行。向他们证明，是他们错了。”——Justgaby3

18. Just breathe!
深吸一口气！
“The best advice I have received is to just breathe! Because when your mind is a puzzle of a million pieces going in all directions, we forget even the most simple actions.” — Wally Ann Wiscovitch, Facebook
“我收到过的最好建议是深吸一口气！因为当你的思维被许多不同头绪的问题千丝万缕地缠绕时，我们甚至会忘记最简单的解决办法。”——沃利·安·威斯克维茨，脸书

Vocabulary
liberal arts：文科
dean：系主任
sassy：时髦的；活泼的
graphic design：平面设计