Real world is not so nice

Finishing up my last semester at Flordia A&M University, my family arrived in droves to witness their youngest boy cross the stage and shake President Ammons’ hand. Now those memories have come and gone.

As the job market gets tougher and tougher to break into and the corporate and professional talent pool stiffens, students need to be aware of what may lay outside of the “Berlin” walls of FAMU.

At one point, I was confident that my experience at FAMU provided me with practical skills to prepare more for this crazy, fast-paced society we call the “real world.”

However, amongst peers superficial values, like who will be running for next “not-so-important” election, are pushed to the forefront while issues that truly affect our lives are pushed to the backburner.

When I graduated last spring, I have to admit it was hard leaving friends, going to the “livest” parties and being socially involved on campus. I became a part of this social vacuum that FAMU sucks you into. Something I’d like to call the “FAMU Comfort Zone.”

I find that all too often people who’ve graduated still visit Tallahassee regularly to relive that undergrad life. These folks can’t find their way out of the “social vacuum” or let go of that undergraduate lifestyle.

The fun at FAMU was great while it lasted. But that’s exactly what it was – fun. Now it’s time to get down to business. Why do I speak so bluntly about this? Because, I was caught in the social vacuum.

Many people, including myself, were concerned about people’s perception of me, being socially accepted and carving out a niche in the eclectic FAMU socio-ecosystem.

Let me give it to you uncut, raw and uncensored: The people in the real world truthfully don’t care about those superficial superfluous activities that you take part in and many of us deemed important and valuable.

From experience, many people frown upon some of these organizations that many of us are a part of and thought were important to be a part of while in undergrad.

Essentially, no one cares if you were Mr. or Miss FAMU or by how many votes you won by.

Unless those things can tally numbers in the accounting department, fill prescriptions in a pharmacy or bring in huge profits to a Fortune 500 company, these people don’t care.

Students wake up. When you step your foot into the professional world, no one cares about the shallow fluff that you may have taken part in. It is time to look at the bigger picture.

In the real world people are playing hardball. People are not networking in hopes of making it into the next Royal Court line-up.

These people are networking to make it up the corporate and professional ladder and to spark substantial change in the neighborhoods and community around them.

Let’s try utilizing those “purposeless” networking and social skills for something that can actually get you somewhere in life and into corporate offices.

In this world there aren’t seven strangers picked to live in a house, work together and have their lives taped. In this world, people don’t care about being polite and show you the real deal. That is the “Real World.”

Nyerere Davidson is a Spring 2008 graduate of FAMU and former FAMUAN managing editor. He can be reached at nyereredavidson@gmail.com.