In a society that longs for youthful innocence, yet forces our young to grow up quickly, it’s easy to get caught up in fear and self-doubt. When growing up, all that you hear is that what you do in college will determine the rest of your life. Work hard in high school, so you can get to college. Pick the exact right major. Graduate from college and get a job. Next comes the family, and eventually you retire. Our citizens are trapped in a formulaic life and are looked down upon if they don’t follow the fold.
But when you’re 18, you don’t know very much. You’re still treated like a child, and yet you’re forced to make these life-altering decisions on what to do post-graduation. This same contradiction carries on into your early 20's. What happens when you find out what you thought you were passionate for isn’t quite what it seemed to be? Or that the school you so carefully picked out isn’t what makes you happy?
Well then, you’re trapped, right? You have to follow the formula even if that means being stuck in a major you hate at a school that doesn’t challenge you. What would your mom say if you changed your major from science to music? What if you transferred schools mid-year because you aren’t happy? Or maybe you decide college isn’t for you. What then? No, that simply won’t do.
It seems preposterous that everyone assumes you should be on one specific path after you graduate high school. What the hell do I know at 18, or 19, or even 20? I see it happen time and time again. I see people get bogged down in other’s expectations, and it keeps them from doing what would make them truly happy. I’m fortunate enough to have parents who supported me when I made a drastic change to my future, but some aren’t so lucky. I’m here to tell you that it’s okay.
It’s okay that your answer to your nosy relatives on what you’re doing with your life is, “I don’t know.” It’s okay to pursue your passions, even if those passions may not be what people consider being an “ideal” major. And you know what? It’s okay to not go to college. Higher education isn’t for everyone, so why waste time and money doing something that you hate?
Search out your happiness, and find a job that makes you feel important. Sometimes it takes some not-so-exciting steps to get you there, but the payoff is infinitely worth it. So I’ll struggle through organic chemistry and commute hours every day to an unpaid internship because I know that one day these things will help get me where I want to go.
Where do you want to go? Instead of getting trapped into thinking that there are things you are supposed to be doing, and shaming yourself for not knowing what those things are, embrace the excitement that comes with indecision. If you don’t like what you’re doing, change it; if you have to, change it again. We aren’t born to go to work and die. Become a mother, start a business, fight crime, or cure cancer. Everyone has a purpose; now go out and search for yours.
