After I started studying at the university, everything has changed. Not only had I changed the city, but I also changed the way of life. From Slovakia to Czechia. From a small town to a huge city. From 25-people-classes to 250+ lecture halls. From local know-it-all to being nobody.
It was tough. I tried to meet everyone, go to every party, organize a bunch of them myself, play drinking games.
#1: Discover the value of money as early as possible
When my parents found out I spent the equivalent of a 2-months budget only on alcohol, I did not get a single penny from them for the next two months.
Without any savings, I had to found a job at the local bakery to pay for my rent and woke up at 4:30 am to earn a living. This was an important life lesson.
But no matter how hard I tried to fit in, I was crushed inside. The neverending stream of new faces, hangovers, endless lectures, skipping classes, and hardly-passed exams. I felt I jumped on a train going in the wrong direction. I started asking myself: Is this how I want others to perceive me?
I was that party guy from a place nobody knew existed. Nobody even knew my name. I wasn’t helping others. I did not have a direction nor mission. I was lost.
#2: Start asking the right questions and the change will come
I found my way into self-development literature. The books went by really fast and I’ve seen that there were others at my place. David Allen. Leo Babauta. Tim Ferriss.
And I started thinking. I knew I was ambitious and I realized how much I wasted my potential. It was a long process, but eventually, I broke out of my inner circle.
I decided to change the environment, so I found a summer job in California in sales. It turned out to be a disaster, but I’ve seen the world and I liked it. So I finished my bachelor's degree in the UK and then spent another 5 months in Stockholm. I started blogging and sharing my experience with others.
I was not a party guy anymore. I became that guy who has seen the world.
#3: Travel. When meeting new people, nobody cares about your reputation
After I learned to see the value of money, found a life purpose, and got experience while working/studying abroad, it was easy for me to find the job I wanted. But about that, maybe some other time.