I Lost My Entreprenuerial Confidence Immediately After Graduation + Tips To Regain It

Did you have plans to be an entrepreneur? A writer? A designer? A singer? You were so sure of yourself before graduation, you had a plan- everything written down, every detail accounted for. Now you have your degree and you’re staring into the future without a buffer between you and the real world. Pressures and fear can make you lose your confidence in your business or entrepreneurial ventures almost immediately after graduation!

Reasons you’ve lost your confidence:

• You were never confident in the first place. It’s always easier to dream about something than accomplish it. Your confidence was built on your imagination.
• It’s hard-working without results, pay, or recognition. You’d never stay at a job that wasn’t paying. Working for yourself is hard, and can be unrewarding.
• You can feel them staring. You feel like people are making fun of you. You are not crazy. People are looking and talking. They are sharing your posts with their best friends, yes they are.
• You haven’t done your research. You watched an all-you-need-to-know video on Youtube and didn’t understand any of the terminologies. You’re realizing this thing is going to be a lot harder than you thought.
• You have no support. Everyone needs community. You got through school or training on your own, you live alone and you’re doing this whole thing alone.
• No one is there to feed your ego or self-esteem. After graduation, the world keeps going. There is no professor, advisor, or course group chat cheering you on anymore.
• You realize you might actually suck. You finessed your way through school or training. All that sleeping in is catching up with you. Now you’re learning you have little to no drive, willpower, or self-discipline and it is scaring you.
• You are disconnected from your spirit and having an identity crisis.
• You’re slipping into a depression after graduating. So many slip into a .depression or funk after graduation, almost immediately sometimes. Your lifestyle changes, you move back to your hometown, you move back in with your parents, you get a job- endless changes!
• Sometimes our mood changes when we are not aligned with God and are not close with our spirits. Your identity of being a student has been stripped. You may need to rediscover yourself.

How to regain your confidence:

• Unfollow anyone you personally know on social media. Friends and family can make us self-conscious and paranoid. Take off some of that pressure by not having to look at their faces every day. You don’t need the extra stress!
• Find someone- even someone online, and support each other. Find an accountability partner, gym partner, prayer partner, anything. We all need someone. Get in a group chat or make one yourself. No one can do the work for you, but knowing someone is experiencing the same thing you are builds confidence.
• Don’t feel dumb for going after your dreams. It’s awkward trying to make it big! Practice is humbling, process is humbling. Embrace it. If you don’t feel awkward you are not doing enough.
• Only follow people who are doing what you want to do. Make social something that inspires you and motivates you- not merely entertainment. Follow blogs and pages that remind you every day what your goals are.
• Remember jealousy is normal! Jealousy can reveal to us what we truly want. If you are jealous of someone, do some reflection and figure out what exactly you want. Don’t allow envy to turn you bitter, or discourage you.
• Stop pumping your brain full of random videos and memes. You need to remain focused and fixated on your ideas. Don’t jerk your mind in a million different directions with an hour of binging Tik Toks.
• Fix your playlists. There’s no reason to listen to trap music when you’re trying to crunch numbers. R&B music isn’t the best music to lift weights to. You need music and an atmosphere that complements your tasks.
• Dopamine detox. Your dreams aren’t giving you the rush they used to. Stay off of social media, keep away from drugs and alcohol, and don’t watch TV until you have done something stimulating.
• Touch your project every day. You have to BOND with your hobbies, projects, and businesses. If you haven’t even looked at the Instagram page since you made it, how could you even maintain an interest? Stay close to them, keep them on your mind and near your heart. If you write, sing, build, design- whatever it is, make it a habit to work on it every day. Even if it’s just five minutes. Slowly you will see change and the results are motivating!
• Do research! Stop playing around. Doing five minutes of googling is not research. Get out a pen and paper and learn the industry, trade, or business you want to go into.
• Pray, fast, and worship! Anything your heart is set on is a part of you, it was given to you by God. This is why you are so passionate and sensitive about it. Be candid and talk to God about your fears, lack of drive or interest, and goals. Allow God to guide you.
• Consider if you are committed to this goal. You may lose confidence immediately after graduation because you looking through new lenses. Now that you are seeing the world as a mature individual, this idea may seem childish, or useless.