take the free samples

It’s graduation season, one of my favorite times of year and I’ve been fortunate to talk to a few upcoming graduates in the last few days. They often have lots of questions about what their next move should be or if they are making the right one. “Will I get stuck in this?”, “Should I try something else first?”, “Will I wish I’d taken a different job?”. It’s hard to know the answers to these questions, but this lesson is often one I share in response.

Take the free samples, especially while you are young.

Have you ever been to an ice cream shop that has unlimited free samples? Or paid attention to how the paint section has so many color options for you to simply take with you and test out? I recommend that you start your work life with the same mindset: take as many samples as you’d like. You might have to try a variety of different jobs or career paths in order to figure out the best one for you. While you are young, with fewer obligations or costs to worry about, explore as many opportunities as you can in order to figure out what you love to do. Don’t worry about wasting time or tasting too many different things. You’ll have more to worry about later if you don’t take the chances right now, while you can.