When I graduated from college, I left with high hopes, wishful thinking, and excitement ready to conquer the world.

Who would've thought that less than two years later, I would find myself in the vicious cycle that many recent graduates find themselves in.

Doing work we hate.

In relationships with people we know we shouldn't be with.

Not knowing who we really are.

Not getting paid enough.

Tired. of. being. COMPLACENT.

The key markers of the quarter life crisis.

But as myself, my girlfriends, guy friends and relatives who are all around the same age started to rant, rave and complain endlessly about having terrible jobs, being in horrible relationships, and not knowing what our purpose was, I knew I had to make a change.

At 23, I was on the brink of depression. My relationship, or shall I say situationship, was on the rocks as usual. My job made me feel as if I was losing grip on reality, and I didn't know who I was.

Talk about scary.

So, I took time and finally made a decision for me.

I up and left the "good" job that everyone expected me to love and the guy I thought loved me all to figure out who I am, and what I'm here for.

Was that the best decision? Emotionally and mentally, yes. Financially, no. My life truly was on the line, like most of you who are tired of being complacent and know you need to take a dive in the deep end but continue to swim in the shallow waters of safety and security.

The lessons I learned while going through the common coming of age crisis helped me find my purpose.

I am in ultimate control of how I react to life.

Although many things in life are out of our control, we do have control over how we react to them. If you get laid off at the dream job you just started, you have the choice of reacting in a negative, distrusting manner about everything in life. Or you can choose to be real with your emotions and find a way to create a new chapter in your life where you can make connections to expand your network to get or build the career you love.

Make serving others a priority.

Rather than feeling entitled to have certain things handed to me, many (if not all) of us want meaningful work, flexible hours, frequent pay raises, and advancement in our careers. This is all amazing, who doesn't want that? But many companies struggle to retain millennials because of the way we communicate with others. Our phones are our lives, so face-to-face engagement is something that we aren't exposed to often. We feel as though our expectations should be a given, especially with our extensive amount of education and student loans to match. To help yourself in any avenue of life, let go of the entitlement complex that things should be given to you. Be receptive to actively listening to feedback and suggestions. Show others what value you offer. Show what makes you unique.

Time won't always be your friend.

Getting married by 25, having kids by 27, and being a millionaire by 29 isn't as easy to attain as we thought it would be when we were younger. Embrace the fact that things in life won't happen exactly as you want it to. So what if you're not married by 26? Take your time and embrace the process in life.

You are your biggest investment.

If you find yourself struggling to meet your goals, or confused with what to do next, reach out to a coach. Life coaches, like myself, help you to put the pieces of your puzzle together so you can achieve what you want in life.

Things won't be easy in life but enjoy your journey, process and the road towards discovering who you are. Because once you do that, you'll be able to drive towards the life you want and deserve to have.

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Laura Opoku

Writing since November 2016 · 1 story contributed