LETTER TO A GRADUATE

JUNE 1971

Young Dave:

Congratulations on reaching this milestone in your life. 

There have been a number of events that you have witnessed in your life to date:

  • Four years on a campus in the rural splendor of NW Massachusetts
  • A great liberal arts education from experienced teachers and not TAs
  • The introduction of co-education at Williams
  • Change to a new 4-1-4 academic year in order to expand opportunities to take courses out of the ordinary
  • A war in Indochina
  • Demonstrations on campus challenging racial equality
  • A vote to close the College to protest the war effort
  • The lack of fraternities (??)

In addition, the last four years were, in many respects, the last extended period where you had the time and opportunity to interact with people with different perspectives in a common environment.  I hope that you took advantage of some, or all, of those opportunities.

But there are many adventures that lie ahead in the next few decades.  Here are things to consider in the years to come.

Personal Issues

  • Find a partner to share your life. From my perspective, that partner should be your intellectual equal and a true individual. Keep in mind that a long-lasting relationship will evolve over time, so factor that into your consideration.
  • If you decide to have a family, spend time with your children as you share the child-rearing duties with your partner. Providing moral direction to the next generation, beginning at a very early stage, is crucial for a successful society.  If you are then blessed with grandchildren, make time for them also.
  • Reflect often on your belief system. But maintain an open mind when you confront the well-reasoned beliefs of others.  Your beliefs can evolve without the loss of your moral compass.
  • Continue to expand your horizons and grow your mind. Learning should be a life-long pursuit
  • Take care of yourself physically and emotionally.

Career and Leadership

  • Now that your collegiate studies are done, you may want to find a First Job to get the experience of actually working. Summer jobs do not count, for people can do just about anything for 9-10 weeks.  I recommend you take such action before you decide on the final path for your life.  That First Job, lasting several years at least, will enable you to develop some skills that may serve you for many years.  You will realize that there are others who are relying on you to do your share of the assigned work.  You need to “show up” and perform; getting a friend’s notes from class is no longer an option or viable solution.
  • If you have the chance, seize any opportunity to become a leader of even a small team of workers. When you try to lead others, you will discover things about your own character as well as the character of others.  Some people need little direction to accomplish a given goal once it is identified.  Some people require constant monitoring to stay on task.  Maybe you will find out which group defines your personal approach to finishing a given task.
  • Find a job (or maybe a series of jobs) that you enjoy performing for your career. Linking your work with something you actually enjoy doing will help you obtain and then maintain emotional equilibrium.
  • Spend the time to develop and hone your job skills. But also remember that few headstones state “Here lies Willie who worked a lot of hours.”  Balance is the key, with the understanding that a pendulum is “in balance” over the long-run but can appear to be out of sync at any given moment.

Social Contribution

  • Find something to do outside of your daily work environment and external to yourself in order to contribute to society. Such activities could be in a wide range of areas such as sport, the arts, faith-based activities, political activities, or something totally different.   Then become involved with the organization in an effort to make it a better place.
  • Share the bounty that you are blessed to receive.
  • Few people truly make it on their own. Become a mentor to someone or a leader of some group.  Most people have help from others along their path of life.  Help maintain the network of the many unnamed mentors and leaders who provide the glue for society.
  • Look for opportunities to impact the lives of others by setting a good example for proper behavior. Others are watching when you are out and about.  Try and maintain a good example on “the important things,” remembering that no one is perfec

General

  • Trust me, you do not need as much “stuff” that you have gathered and will be gathering during your life either alone, with a partner, or with a family. Start curtailing your consumption at an early stage.  You never see a hearse with a carrier hitch pulling a U-Haul.

Good luck on living your own, individual life. 

Maybe I will check in at your 50th reunion.

Older (and wiser?)

David C. Olson

Jamaica Plain, MA

August 2019