Who remembers sitting at the old round tables in kindergarten being asked what they want to be when they grow up? The teacher went around the class and restless little six-year-olds shouted out anything from doctor, astronaut, baker, professional soccer player, and the President of the United States. I was the one who roared, "Doctor." My parents nurtured my dream. When I was seven, Santa brought me an all-inclusive doctor’s kit. It came with a coat, stethoscope, prescription pad, and more. I clearly remember opening it up that Christmas morning.
As I continued through elementary school, teachers began telling us to dream big, but realistically. “You want to be a doctor, that’s fantastic, but it’s eight years of extra school after college and you’ll be in tons of debt, and that’s even if you make it to med-school.” Yes, that scared me, but it was my dream, why change it?
High school was a major game changer. Until junior year, I was still on the doctor path. I enrolled in all the higher sciences; I struggled, but got through it. Junior year came and our guidance counselors were cracking down on us for college applications and determining our future. I distinctly remember one teacher walking up to me and cautiously stating that I’m smart, just not smart enough to be a doctor. I was devastated. Who is she to tell me what I can and cannot do? I was advised to have back-up plans. I decided nursing was a safe bet. Slowly, I became excited about nursing. A pediatric nurse practitioner: sounded interesting and complex to me!
At Freshmen Orientation I declared my major, pre-nursing. I felt like a hotshot because my school had the top-nursing program in all of Florida. My course load was rough, but I was very excited about the end goal. The first semester was horrid. I cried constantly, not because I was homesick or broken-hearted, but because Anatomy and Physiology and Biology 1 were making my life a living hell. After countless phone calls with my mom, meetings with my academic advisor, and C’s on exams, I changed my major.
Changing my major was one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever made. I felt like I was giving up on my dreams and cutting myself short. I pondered the idea of different majors until I found an interesting one, Business Management. Don’t get me wrong, I adore my classes, calculus and economics are way better than Chemistry and Biology, but this isn’t my dream, my dream is to be a Pediatric Oncologist (doctor for kids with cancer).
A year into my new major, and I still question myself. Did I make the right decision? Is Business Management what I want to do? Yes, I’m getting better grades and I enjoy the classes more, but the end goal isn’t one I’ve dreamed of.
Through this difficult decision, I’ve learned a great lesson on compromise. Many of us are opposed to compromise for the wrong reason. We are changing our majors and abandoning our dreams just to ensure a higher salary and easier course load. What we should be doing is taking the lesser salary and the tougher classes, but having our dream job. The classes won’t always be easy. We might have to study a few hours more, cry on the phone to our moms, get a few C’s; but in the end, we’ll be doing what we’ve always dreamed of, isn’t that worth it?
I’ll leave you with one final thought: Confucius once said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." I truly believe this and it’s something I strive for every day.
