I sat down to talk with my close friend, Will Ferguson, and talked to him about his experience with finishing college.
What are your thoughts as you approach Graduation?
Will:
Yeah, so me specifically, I approach change very much—the farther away I am from the change, the more daunting it seems to me. I've always been my whole life kind of afraid of change. And when I see it approaching, especially from the beginning of this semester, knowing it was my last semester, it's almost like a wave. It looks really, really, really daunting from far away, and I always think, "Oh my goodness, this wave is too big. This wave is gonna swallow me and crush me."
And so, the first half of the semester, I really just had the mindset where I was like, "Oh my gosh, look at what I'm gonna be leaving behind," because I've made a lot of friends here, and I've made a lot of experiences here, and things that I was thinking I was gonna just be so, so sad and distraught to leave because I built my life around here and lived here for a couple of years.
But recently, the past couple of weeks actually, it's been an absolute blessing. I've had a total, total change in perspective, because the science really is: you can't fear and be grateful at the same time. It's impossible based on how those—the waves that those thoughts produce.
So instead, I start every morning and I try to out-grateful myself. I'm just like, so thankful: "Thank you, Lord. I'm so thankful that you sent your son. Thank you for my friends, thank you for where I'm at, and Liberty, and everything I've done and accomplished. Thank you for the friends that I have made."
And when you say "I'm thankful," and say it so much, it almost puts it in like a past tense, 'cause like, I'm thankful for what happened. Instead of, "Oh my gosh, look what I'm going to miss out on," it's more, "Look at the experiences I was able to have."
And so now, throughout my day, as I experience things, at the beginning of the semester if I would have experienced that, I'd have been like, "Oh no, I won't be able to go to the gym anymore. I'll miss times like this." But now it's more, "I'm thankful so much for times like this." I'm grateful now when I leave that I'll be able to look back at all these fun times, and it gets me... I feel more at peace.
Because in the moment, if you're thinking about missing the moment, when you look back, all you were doing in the moment was missing the moment and not actually living in the moment. So it also helps you more live in the moment. So because of that, only really recently have I been at peace about leaving college and my time here at Liberty.
What are your main goals, either short or long term, for after Graduation?
Will:
So, the first thing is, I'm getting married on Saturday, which is pretty insane. I definitely—talking to Raegan, I knew i wanted to get married after i graduated with my master's, and so we decided on a couple days after i graduate with my master's. And so it's pretty, it's pretty short after.
As far as my expectations, especially going back to what I was talking about with change, this is totally having to change my perspective because this is the biggest change in both mine and her life. Not only am I getting married, I'm leaving my friends, I am leaving my family, I am leaving my job. Everything about my life is changing, because I'm moving to a new city. I'm going to have to meet new people, meet new friends, I'm gonna have to find a job, which I'll go into, and then obviously I'm getting married, and then I'm gonna have a wife. And my goal with that is to out-serve her and love her every day.
So... I really don't know what my expectations are, and I think that's why it's so important that I'm very thankful that I can trust the Lord, and that He's been ahead of me, and He's laid out my path before me, and He's never failed me yet. And because of that, I do have a lot of peace.
Definitely with the job... the job market's hard, and I know that's something you can relate to a lot, so we're definitely similar there. I've been throwing my application out a bunch, but only about ten percent of the time I get something back, and every time it's been a "no" so far.
The job specifically that I've been applying for are like corporate trainer roles. I'm looking for something where I'm able to do basically education but within business. I want to take employees that need better communication, leadership skills, even when they need onboarding, to do their job better. I want to create their curriculum, and if possible, go in and actually train and teach them, because I love watching people grow, and grow more into their skill sets.
Are there any fears you had or still have going into the next chapter of your life?
Will:
I definitely would have a lot more fears if I didn't know that the Lord has a plan in mind, and it's something I am able to trust Him with, because I know His plan is always better. Whenever I trust my plan, it's never as good as the one He has for me.
But... definitely, I'll be honest, I was telling you, all of the change is a little scary. I know one of my fears I've always had is my fear of not measuring up, and not being good enough. I know it's easy to set expectations for yourself and be like, "This is where I should be at this point in life," and seeing social media especially, and these people with business while they're so young, and it's easy to look at yourself and be like, "Am I behind?" when the reality is nobody is behind.
So, I don't know, I definitely am a little nervous about when I'll get a job. I know it will happen eventually. Security is big, and I'd like to be able to provide for Raegan, and have some dual income, because I know just her job won't be enough forever, if I'm always just looking for something. I'm definitely hoping something sticks as far as jobs go.
So... yeah, I'm really hoping in my three weeks that I'm down (in Georgia) where I can't drive because of my ACL surgery. I'm really planning on maximizing it to my fullest and getting my routine together, getting a healthy schedule in place, as well as just figuring out all of my adult financial stuff.
My Thoughts
So, starting off, I want to talk about how proud I am of Will. He's been an amazing friend to me, and extremely supportive of everything I've done. I wish him the best in marriage, his job search, and whatever future endeavors he pursues. I know he'll do great things.
The first thing I want to talk about from Will's perspective is his approach to staying positive. His mindset of "out-gratefuling" himself is something I never really considered. In a sense, I think he is basically outweighing the negative thoughts with positive ones. I know for myself and many people that's easier said than done, but maybe it's worth a try to start in the morning the way he does. Those waking moments can set the tone for the rest of the day. Being thankful for what you have or what you've experienced can help you appreciate the present more, just like he said.
Will's goals following graduation understandably focus on his upcoming marriage. He puts a heavy focus on finding a job that allows him to provide for Raegan and serve her to the best of his abilities. This desire to serve is a great motivator for someone in his position, and I believe it will be the foundation for a strong future, both in marriage and in his professional life.
Adressing Will's fears, there are a few parallels that can be drawn to my own feelings. Setting high expectations for myself is something I really struggle with, especially when I'm surrounded by friends who I believe are incredibly talented and smart, more so than I see myself. Knowing that other people struggle with that brings some comfort, and a reminder that everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. He's right when he says "nobody is behind", because everyone has their own unique path in life, and you never know where you'll end up until you get there.
To close out, I want to give a very special thank you to Will for taking the time to answer my questions. You're the best, Will.