Congratulations to all the high school graduates in the Class of 2016.

As you move into the next stage of your lives — be it college, a job, the military or a “gap year” — let us offer you some advice.

We are in a unique position to give that advice. We aren’t your parents or peers, but we also genuinely care about you because you are our future.

— Find your inner happiness. Ask: What really makes you happy? What do you look forward to doing? What brings you the most satisfaction? When you have answered those questions, go for it.

— Set lofty goals. But don’t measure your self-worth on whether you reach those big goals. Success comes in the lessons you learn along the way. But without a road map to reaching those goals you will wander. As you follow that map, remember it takes small steps to reach for big goals.

— Think of ways you can give back to your community. You may move to a new place. Learn about your new home. Find ways you can contribute to the community. It may be a college community or a workplace community. You will learn much from giving back. Your community or workplace will benefit from your talent.

— Step outside your comfort zone. It is easy to settle into a routine in your new stage of life. Avoid falling into a rut. Challenge yourself to experience new people, places and things. Experience the diversity in cultures, ages, religions and races. Perhaps it will be as simple as dining at a true ethnic restaurant or listening to a different style of music.

— Find a mentor. Find a person who will invest time in you and guide you. They will let you make mistakes. But they will encourage and challenge you. Most important, they will be there for you.

— Step back to step ahead. Speaking of taking a year off before starting post-secondary education, the military or a career, we offer this advice: Don’t waste this “gap year.” Going to the beach to learn to surf for a year or backpacking around Europe to find yourself may sound good, but think again. Even Steve Jobs took college classes after he dropped out of school. Later in his career, Jobs talked about how those drop-in classes helped him in developing the unique Apple products that have changed much of our world.

 

— St. Cloud Times, June 4