Abstract :
In the past few months, it has become clear to the author that the sum of everything in my graduate education that has fallen short of his naive expectations has been just a drop in the bucket compared to the relentless maelstrom of negative thoughts he rained down on himself every day. Hw was, to use a cliche, his own worst enemy. He is not trivializing how important it is to have resources and educators around you that are genuinely invested in your success; however, he feels it is impossible to make the most of any situation or reach your full potential if you are constantly getting in your own way. He concludes that we are all searching. Some are graduate students like him, some are stuck in their first jobs out of college and are slowly realizing that their yearly salary bump and bonus can´t compensate for the emptiness of their profession, and others have had four completely different jobs in four years and are no closer to figuring out what they want. Social commentators love to say, somewhat scornfully, that it is the privilege of my generation to spend more money and time than ever before collecting name-brand degrees, only to graduate and feel lost and spend our prime career-building years trying to find ourselves again. We sometimes even return to the nest to hide out for a few years and find solace in the protective cocoon of our families. His final thought is that the commentators are right - we do that, and it is a privilege, but that does not mean it is a mistake.
