Being a graduate is not easy. What to do now? Everybody tells you is time to get a “real job” and start “building your CV”.

It always amazes me when people say: when you are young is the time for you to work in jobs you don’t like, for companies that you are not passionate about, to conquer a respectable position in your industry. It sounds like the perfect recipe for a miserable life, right?

Last week I watched a Ted talk that really inspired me, it was about going up a ladder and years later realizing you climbed the wrong wall. And all because you decided to listen to everyone else but YOU.

I recently gave up a stable job in one of the fastest growing British fashion brands to pursue a new dream: To become an entrepreneur. I decided to take the risk and work for an exciting start-up. Why? I wanted to break free from my small cubicle, where I was clock-watching and constantly frustrated, and join a company where I could develop skills that would get me a step closer to my goal.

Was it an easy decision? Not at all. I took a big pay-cut, my parents weren’t all that happy initially and I knew I would be constantly out of my comfort zone. But if you want to make your dreams come true, you must create a road-map on how to get where you want to be. This was step-one on my action plan, and I knew that taking this risk would take me closer to the finish line.

That Ted Talk made me realize that now is possibly the best time to pursue my dreams and do what I always wanted to. This is the best time for you to go after your big goals too. It can be anything; opening your own business, working for an exciting start-up or your favorite charity, earn a living teaching in different countries etc. Whatever it is that you always wanted to do, you can do it. I am serious, you can do it!

Stop following someone else’s agenda for your life. Find out what you want to do right now, get out there and aim high, because the likelihood of achieving what you envision is actually pretty high when you focus on it.