This email is about stress

Good morning.

I’m sitting in my dorm lounge with my laptop and a dream.

I don’t know what that dream is, but I thought it sounded cool.

Anywho. It’s been 2 weeks since I started college, and recently, it feels like a war has been raging in my head (dark, I know).

On the one hand, I want to enjoy being a college kid. Play some pickup basketball, join a few clubs, and maybe even a fraternity.

On the other hand, it feels like college isn’t the right place for me. Classes are basic and boring. The people I’ve been around are mostly focused on drinking and partying.

And those who are more professionally minded are focused on “networking”, getting an internship, or… *gasp* working with a real client.

I don’t mean to sound pessimistic, but none of those things sound interesting.

I know college is more than just classes or getting a job. And I know I’ll find people who share similar interests—so for now, I’m remaining optimistic and continuing to put myself out there.

Anyway, as you can probably tell, I dislike uncertainty. So naturally, I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself to have my future planned out.

For the most part, that’s worked well for me.

At 18, I worked at a fast-growing tech startup, grew my content agency to $15k+/mo, and built a brand, skillset, and network that’s given me the freedom to not have to work a “regular 9-5”.

(That doesn’t make me better than anyone… just different)

Which brings us to today’s lesson:

The other day as I was thinking about what life without college would look like…

I got caught up in the tactical stuff and forgot to account for what I actually wanted.

My focus went from “how can I work on things that I enjoy?”

To “which path will help me grow my business to make more money so I don’t have to worry about staying in college or getting a job?”

And that took the fun out of it.

I found myself stressed out, and not in a great headspace.

But here’s the thing I’ve learned:

Bad decisions are made when you think from a place of stress, rather than abundance.

Sure, sometimes stress can be a way to motivate yourself. But it also removes the joy from the process.

You’ll be at a frat party with dozens of people around you and your favorite song playing as you dance with your friends.

But you won’t be all the way there.

Part of you will be anxious, worrying about how you don’t have your life figured out.

Instead, learn to accept the ambiguity of life.

You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be, and that’s that.

Stressing doesn’t fix anything, so you might as well be where you are.

See you next Sunday,

Jay “still figuring it out” Yang

Jay’s Finds

Some of the best content I found on the internet this week…

• 11 lessons from 33 years years of life (I’m a sucker for life advice articles)

• 10 techniques to prompt ChatGPT better (I’ve been down the AI rabbit hole recently)

• The formula for creating irresistible headlines (Eddie is one of my favorite copywriters)

Top Tweets of The Week

Truly magical.

Walks around campus late at night hit different.

With every ‘yes’, comes a stress.

Biggest change in college is no one telling you what to do. You don’t have to raise your hand to use the bathroom, no one is going to tell you to do your homework or do your laundry or even shower. All on you now.

Great reminder. “Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.”

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