  I just got my paycheck and was complaining about how much they take out of each paycheck..and did some calculations...I realized the the freaking government takes out $8,000 out of my salary every year in taxes and deductions...the real world sucks.. and a post from my xanga about the corporate real world... Sometimes, I feel fake. I feel like I've aged so much. I try to give people the benefit of the doubt but at the same time, nothing can completely faze me anymore. They teach you in KDPhi that there is a thin line between business and personal. Heck, the real world stresses it even more and that line grows thinner and thinner by the minute.
I know how shady people can be. I know how people will do anything for money. I know that loyalty is hard to come by. I've learned how easy it is to promise someone something so they get off your back. I've seen people crumble under pressure. I've seen people give and give so much of themselves and get nothing in return.
I've seen people get walked all over. I've heard people talk so much sh*t and how they're never content with what they have. It's almost like - what's the point of complaining. But at the same time, silence says something. When sometimes, you think that you can just shut up and suck it up. Then, sometimes, they take your silence to mean something else.
I've learned about insurance and different insurance plans. I've learned what different benefits different companies offer. I've learned that they will always make their company sound like they're giving you a great deal (btw - HMOs and PPOs are a rip-off) and I've learned about 401Ks and I've learned about reviews and promotions and commissions and I've learned that little things DO add up. I've learned how the corporate world will suck you dry. I've seen how they will do everything possible to cheat you and make you think that you just got a great deal. I've heard people talk vengeance and revenge upon anyone who has wronged them.
I've seen people try to steal money from you and act as if you owed it to them. I've felt the whiplash of someone's anger. I've seen how quickly disappointment will grow into annoyance and then into anger. I've seen how communication can deteriorate and ruin any working professional relationship, heck any relationship. I've seen good but I've also seen plenty of bad. I've learned about "mindset" and all the BS that it can be.
I've learned that it's best to be trained like a robot but at the same time, you need to have that HUMAN greed and that animalistic instinct. Sometimes, you think that there is a hierarchy - heck, there is a wall of hierarchy (pyramid scheme) in the real world...and don't think that your small business is okay - eventually, you'll hit that point when it'll turn corporate and everything that you believed in once...will turn on you. You may have your morals and high standards - don't ever give up on them. Even if you do lose your job over it. It sucks...we always preach quality over quantity (and YES, it is good in the long run to have quality QUALITY quality but...heck, it's the real world - quality doesn't matter - they just want the numbers cuz then, it's a mob mentality and we're all followers..) And this is what I've learned from the two years since my graduation from college. Enjoy college while you can live it up the bubble world...then, welcome to Reality. 
