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[Polari]

So at the end of last year I left school. I passed and all, which was nice and means I can go to University/College but I decided not to because I don't really have any clue as to what I want to do, and I felt like I needed a bit of break.

So now life is sort of strange. I work part time (the "part" is a very small one) and I have copious amounts of spare time. All my friends either work full time or are in education, so although I see them at the weekends and have nights out, they're not really available during the day. It's also a little strange because most of them have moved out and are living with people, which sort of changes the whole situation.

The other problem is that I'm just not motivated to do anything. I really enjoy reading, but I'm too lazy to really get stuck into a book or to go to the library. So basically I just lie in bed and play games, or watch films, and do chores like vacuum the house and do the dishes. Also for some reason, time seems to go really fast. The other day I realised it was June, and was shocked. I have been doing absolutely nothing for 8 months now.

I'm stuck in a rut, I guess. Any ideas how to get out of it? Has anyone here been in a similar situation, a post-school lull? What ended up happening to you?

 

[Teddman]

I was in that sort of lifestyle for a couple months after a post-college summer internship. Except I was hitting bars and hanging out with friends in the evenings a lot. One of my good buddies was also unemployed at the time.

I ended up dating a former girlfriend again and visiting her at school every weekend, that kind of snapped me out of it. Soon I got motivated to get a better job and become a bit more responsible...

I think everyone needs some downtime after 16 years of formal education, just don't let it go on too long.

 

[Johnas]

Why are you not working full time, making some $ while deciding on what you should do school-wise sometime down the road?

At the very least you should be doing that, IMO. I'm single and work full-time (graduated college last year) and I still find plenty of free time to do the things I want.

I'm not trying to make you sound like a bum or anything, but it just makes sense to save up a little cheese, unless your parents are loaded and don't have to worry about that right now.

While it may be true for some, don't necessarily believe that time off from school won't do you any good. I got really burned out after a couple of years of college, took off a year working various jobs, then got back into school and finished with honors. I really needed the time off just to do something different.

Also, there is a fair amount of core classes you need to get out of the way regardless of your major, you could knock them out during your first 2-3 semesters of school.

 

[OpinionatedCyborg]

I was going to take a year off, but after 3 months of no school, and all work (2 jobs, one full, one part) I was seriously going insane. So I registered for a few University classes in the second sem. Unfortunately, I couldn't take on a full load, so my education bonds were useless, but let me tell you -- school's way, way, way better than doing nothing (my jobs don't count as something). Even if you have no clue what you want to do with your life (I have a lot of ideas, but my path remains uncharted), school's a good option if you have the means and an interest in learning.

My suggestion to you is simple: go back to school. You don't need to take on a full course load at first. Just take a few classes to get your feet wet. If you like it, enroll yourself in more classes. If you don't, well, you aren't any worse off (except financially).

If school's still not something you're interested in, why not persue some of your other interests more in your spare time. You like games and you like reading. Try your hand at videogame writing on a few different sites. Most people running them are full time students; your abundance of free time means you'll be able to rearrange press releases in creative ways the world has never seen before!

You need to find something to motivate you into becoming something better. If experience, learning, and social status aren't enough to do that, then your calling is in another field...or you might have mild to moderate psychological problems (aka depression).

Parting advice: talk to a university counsellor. Sometimes we know what's best for us, but we refuse to look it in the eye and go for it; these guys can help.

 

[Stryder]

The same thing happened to me. After finishing high school and starting uni I left my course a month or two into it and ended up wasting a whole year (pretty much). I played games, and did basically the same sort of thing, it was 3:00 in the afternoon before I knew it and the day was pretty much gone.

My advice, or what I wish I had have done, is set yourself a goal and try and achieve it, force yourself to get out of bed in the morning to do it.

You can do something like getting fit, learning a martial art or something is good for this, learning a software package (I really should have started learning how to model/animate in this time off, as it's a goal of mine to do one day), or just start reading a book like you say you want to do.

I guess it kind of feels overwhelming the amount of free time you have, and that kind of de-motivates you to do things, but just remember that later in your life you're probably going to be really busy and wish that you had the free time you have now. You really need to just force yourself to do things, employ the help of someone else around the house (if there is anyone, like your Mum) to help motivate you to work on your goal.

The most important piece of advice I can give is do something, anything.. just don't let the time slip by and do nothing.

 

[Chrono]

The most important piece of advice I can give is do something, anything.. just don't let the time slip by and do nothing.

:'(

 

[Cerebral Palsy]

I wasted 3 years after highschool working. The company I worked for went under, and I decided I needed to go back and finish school. 2 more years left on my degree =/ But it has been going really well.

 

[Tarazet]

I took a year off before going to college. I want that year back now.

 

[Polari]

Why are you not working full time, making some $ while deciding on what you should do school-wise sometime down the road?

At the very least you should be doing that, IMO. I'm single and work full-time (graduated college last year) and I still find plenty of free time to do the things I want.

I'm not trying to make you sound like a bum or anything, but it just makes sense to save up a little cheese, unless your parents are loaded and don't have to worry about that right now.

Erm, it's complex. I don't really need the money that badly as I also receive a benefit and the job I have I don't really want to quit since I've only been doing it for a few months.