[guitarhacks]

Nice tips but I already knew that in elementary school. The most important thing is not the transition after the college or university but your work and making connections WHILE you are studying. - You must build your network while you are studying and find people who you like to work with (look at Facebook?). Of course that depends on what University you are studying. Better University, better networks.

- Besides chasing girls and partying don't just learn to get good grades. Find something you like to do and work on it, your field of interest etc.

- Join all kinds of university projects WHILE you are studying that you think can help in your future job, career. Ask your teacher and tell him: I WANT MORE :) Especially if he is well known and you think he is awesome. Work more then everybody else and show him your own projects. He will introduce you to other interesting people. Latter in your life he can recommend you to someone or help you in finding a good job (maybe, you never know).

- Go to other lectures and find interesting people and ideas

- Don't enjoy your student life too much

If you work on all this your transition will be a lot better after you get out. I studied with one of the best teachers and performers in my field and he used to say to his students: "Look at that guy over there (me), you have to be crazy like him"

[eli_gottlieb]

You're picking up lots of downvotes, including from me. I'm going to explain why.

* Your first point is trite. Everyone says, "find your passion". Guess what? Most real people don't live lives structured around the pursuit of some driving passion -- just like how most people don't become start-up millionaires. You or I in specific may or may not be special, unique snowflakes, but any Life Advice premised on the recipient being a special, unique snowflake is very bad advice.

* Your second point combines workaholism with straight-up brown-nosing. Nobody likes a brown-noser, and contrary to your apparent thinking, bosses and professors can in fact spot them. Especially professors, actually! My stepfather is an old-hat Electrical Engineering professor, and he has told our family the occasional story about undergrads who were obviously just looking for a nice letter of recommendation or graduate students who could not complete PhDs because they were better at sucking up and obeying orders than original thinking.

* Your third point is trite.

* Your fourth point is... ugh. I don't even have commonly-understood words for this concept. It's like trying to find a word for water in Fish Language. Puritanical? Anti-Spiral? There's something really fucked-up about telling other people to avoid enjoying a valid, valuable part of their life.

Overall, your post comes across as if you're someone who kicks puppies, sucks up to everyone above him, and only cares about career advancement. If people in your field say "you have to be crazy" to mean "you have to be a joyless, semi-sociopathic workaholic", tell me what line of work you're in so I can avoid it for the rest of time.

[guitarhacks]

Hmm..You totally missed my points and managed to insult me and my work, although the part with puppies was funny :)

* I never said you have to be a snowflake. I know that most men live quite lives of silent desperation, as Thoreau once stated. My first point was about making a network, BEING SOCIAL. And working on something you like.. I am not talking about true passion because for some people they need time to find it. Is it that hard to find something you like and collaborate with other people on it?

* brown noser? I was never nice with teachers. My problem was, since elementary school I mostly did not like my teachers and often times told them what I think. Why is somebody who wants more a brown noser. In my life I had few good teachers and always tried to learn as much as I could from them. I was not like a pest at the lecture or kissing ass. There is a difference. My point was that you alone or with somebody else make a nice project and show it to him or her for example. Not boost on lectures asking stupid questions.

* whats wrong with going to other lectures?

* Of course you have to enjoy your life at the Uni, I did. But also some people do it too much. I just wrote don't do it too much.

My teacher meant crazy because I would stay for all the classes and listen to the all the lectures while other people would goo home after theirs, there were other things as well.. now we come to my profession. I studied at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, classical guitar with one of the best guitarists today. And I was the youngest student, age 15. I visited lots of other universities including Juilliard etc. and played in US and Europe. Maybe that will clarify some things and explain the crazy comment. I also did audio programming, jazz, composition with other people as well. And I was crazy about linux, still am. I would argue how better is from windows etc. In short, avoid me next time you go to the concert hall :) Maybe my style and English is a bit brash but all I wanted was to give some tips based on my insights. Here is my recording from youtube http://youtu.be/n9c48k4FDx8 My sincerity and truth telling is clear from this music.

[CamperBob2]

Most real people don't live lives structured around the pursuit of some driving passion

Correct. Those are the people that Thoreau was talking about.