Our entire lives we are told that we should know what we are supposed to do as a career. Even at a young age everyone will ask us what we want to be. Some of us say astronaut, some say police officer while others will say princess. Unfortunately not all of us can major in princess manner and etiquette. Actually none of us can major in that seeing as it doesn't exist but the lack of this major is beside the point. I however wanted to be a veterinarian due to my never ending love for animals. I learned really quick, like before I left high school quick, that science was not going to be something I did for the rest of my life. But I went to college anyway without a definitive idea of what I wanted to be for the rest of my life because I was told I would be able to "find myself" in college. Boy, was that a mistake. My first year of college did not go well and I'm not ashamed to admit that because I am able to recognize that college isn't for everyone. Later on I was able to graduate with my associates degree and I was the first one in my family to to do that which felt amazing. It felt good to have something that was all mine because I worked hard for it. I used to be ashamed of telling my friends that I quit after I received my associates degree. That I had some how failed everyone around me because I took a full time job instead of going on with my education. That is until I realized that what other people think doesn't matter. I know that is the most cliche line and much easier said than done but it really is true. What we fail to recognize, is that for many, college is just not in the cards for them. Whether it be for financial reasons, their hatred towards institutions of higher education, or they flat out don't want to- college isn't for everyone and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It really doesn't matter what you do as long as you are happy, healthy and doing it legally you have no reason to change what you are doing. I have plenty of friends that went to college for a couple semesters then decided they wanted to do something else and they are doing just fine, if not better, than some that graduated with four year degrees. Maybe you just want to go straight from high school to the military; that's fine and no one will judge you for that. In fact, thank you for your service. Thank you for your dedication to protecting the freedom of this country. Maybe you just want to go to a technical school and learn a specialized trade. Awesome! I hope you learn the trade you need to guarantee you a steady job and paycheck for years to come. Don't let anyone diminish who you are or who you want to be just because you don't have a piece of paper that says you fulfilled the credits necessary to graduate. And for those of you that are working on some sort of degree, props to you. Congratulations on everything and I hope that you are making your family, or even yourself, extremely proud. I hope and pray that you secure a job in your field soon after graduation and move through your career setting bars high for those who come after you. To anyone that still doesn't know what they want to do in life: you will figure it out. It may not be today, or tomorrow, or even six months from now and that is okay. There isn't a set timeline on life. You can switch and change what you want to be as many times as it takes. Just know that you may not know me, but I am rooting for you. I am rooting for you even if you believe that no one else is and I have faith in you to do what ever you want to do. So go out, make mistakes, change your major a few times, take time to make money before you put yourself in debt trying to find yourself- but don't ever give up on yourself.