Before I came to college, I thought I knew what I wanted as a career. It was always to be a writer, an author; my goal was to bring my imagination to life in the form of black and white words printed on cream color paper. It was to give the voices in my head a name, a face, and a story to thrive in. It was to create different worlds that would allow others to escape their own realities just as other authors allowed me that same escape. It was what I loved, and it still is.

When I got to college, my thoughts on my career changed. Even though my notebooks full of stories filled my shelves in my dorm, there were others that interested me. Marketing looked appealing. The way it could persuade people with a few simple words or by a look of a product fascinated me. I thought that with my writing skills, I could possibly go into writing advertising some how. With this thought, my ideas of a fiction concentration changed. Maybe I should switch to a nonfiction concentration to better fit that idea. It would help me to describe people better and figure out their desires and needs. Advertising is creative, it’s just not as expansive and imaginative as the fictional stories I had read.

When my thoughts turned to marketing, I was reminded of art. I took an art history class in high school and was completely enthralled with the pieces. I remembered that all of the art was influenced by the society, the culture, and the politics that surrounded the artists. I got to thinking that that is what advertising is all about, especially marketing. People who work in the marketing industry study the trends and interests of the public on a daily basis to determine what can appeal to them. It’s an art all by itself.

When I started thinking about art culture, it reminded me of different world cultures. That idea brought me back to writing. To be more specific, it brought me back to travel writing, which is a form of nonfiction work. I grew up traveling, and I thoroughly enjoy immersing myself in new cultures. It’s exciting and full of adventure because it is part of the job descriptions. A part of travel writing is marketing the places you visit in order to draw more people to the destination. If I had the art history minor, it would help a lot too because the world was founded on art.

As I started to think about traveling, my thoughts turned to hospitality. With travel articles, hotels, transportation, and restaurants are covered thoroughly. I believe that I have the demeanor that is necessary for those who work in hospitality, specifically that of the hotel industry. I like making people happy and I find that I am skilled in resolving problems. I am a good listener and try to be helpful as much as possible. My family is entering the hotel side of hospitality, so I thought maybe I could be part of the family business then.

When I started thinking of industries, my thoughts went back to writing. To be more specific, publishing. A bunch of questions started popping up in my head. Do I like writing my own work? Or do I like helping others with their own written work? Can I rely on myself to write every day or do I want to immerse myself in someone else’s work? Do I love reading books and helping others with their work more than writing my own? Do I really want to write as a career or do I want to keep it as a hobby?

College is a time to explore my options. I didn’t fully understand that until I actually started my freshman year. My mom always told me to keep an open mind and to be more flexible. Now I know she’s right. I’m scared because now I am a sophomore in college and now lost in what I want to do. Yet now I remember not everyone has a declared major, and that there is still time. My degree is not permanent, and it doesn’t determine my future.