What’s next for you now that you’ve graduated? You’re going to put that hard-earned degree to use and eventually get out of mom and dad’s basement, right? Do you have a job lined up yet?
Are you closing your eyes, gritting your teeth, and clenching your fists yet? If you’re a recent grad, you’re already used to the constant barrage of these obnoxious, invasive, and—at times—condescending questions.
Luckily, if you already have a gig lined up, responding is pretty easy. You simply paste on a smile and spit out the rehearsed and robotic response that’s pretty much ingrained in your muscle memory by this point: “I’ll be working at Company XYZ as a Position XYZ. I’m excited to get started!”
Is having to constantly repeat the same answer slightly annoying? Yes. But, it’s nothing compared to fielding these merciless questions when you don’t actually have a position waiting for you. In fact, this is usually enough to make you want to duck under the nearest table and cross your fingers that nosy person will move on to pestering someone else.
However—fair warning—that’s probably not your best (or, uhhh, most rational) course of action. Instead, you need to take a deep breath, stay cool, calm, and collected, and tackle those pesky questions head-on. Here’s how.
1. Recognize Pure Intentions
Believe me, I know that these ceaseless questions become draining and downright exhausting. But, they truly become a lot easier to deal with if you make an effort to recognize that everyone who’s asking them is well-meaning—they’re genuinely curious about what your next steps are, and want to wish you well.
So, as much as it can feel like they’re only out to remind you that you’re a worthless person who’ll never land a job, that’s simply not true. Remind yourself that the intentions are pure, and your response will go from agitated and forced to warm and friendly!
2. Do Some Prep Work
You already know you’re going to be prompted with these questions a lot (and I mean a lot). So, there’s really no use in trying to wing it each time. Instead, doing some prep work to create a canned response that you can use time and time again will make the entire process that much more painless.
In order to come up with a response, you first need to lay the groundwork. Take some time to think about what your plan actually is. Whether you’re taking some time off to just recharge or travel, you have a few leads on some great gigs, or you’re still actively job searching, determine what you actually want to share with those people who keep prying into your personal and professional life. That will be helpful in actually crafting your go-to response.
3. Rehearse Your Responses
Once you’ve determined what you want to say, it’s time to figure out how exactly you’ll say it. Yes, rehearsing your answer can seem like a bit of overkill (although, nobody’s saying you need to stand in front of your bathroom mirror using a hairbrush as a fake microphone).
But, believe me, when you’re going to be asked the same question over and over again, it’s actually helpful to be able to spit out a response with very little thought required.
So, sit down and scribble out a few replies that you think fit the bill. It doesn’t need to be long or overly complicated. Even something straightforward like, “I’m actually taking some time off to recharge and figure out what’s next for me,” will work just fine.
Then, pick the one that you think sounds the best, commit it to memory, and rejoice in the fact that you can now address those endless pesky questions with very little effort!
4. Switch the Conversation
You’re all for networking. But, that doesn’t mean you want your great aunt Judy to offer to connect you with her reading club buddy’s son who works somewhere you aren’t even remotely interested in—you have your limits.
And, when people find out you’re job searching, these sorts of proposals come up all the time. You can appreciate their kindness and concern. But, that doesn’t mean you want to take them up on their sweet (and usually pretty irrelevant) offer.
Once you’ve shared your next steps via your canned response, your best bet is to shift the conversation back to the other person. Ask how his home remodel is going. Ask her about her dog. Ask anything to move the spotlight away from you.
People love talking about themselves, so it should definitely keep the discussion flowing (without any mention of career trajectories, no less). You’ll look like an awesome conversationalist, and you’ll save yourself from that hopeless string of job-related follow-up questions.
Graduating is exciting. But, it also comes with its fair share of hassles. As if having to hunt for your first job wasn’t enough, you’re also left to field those pesky questions from literally everyone you know.
Use these four tips as your guide, and you’ll respond to those inquiries with poise and confidence (no diving under the nearest table required).
