Have you ever had a job that made you want to wake up every morning? A job where you were excited to see your coworkers and you were passionate about the work that you did?

Well, I did.

Doing the Disney College Program at Walt Disney World changed my life. Before going to Florida, I had had a plan. I would take a year off from school after graduation and move to the happiest place on earth, work there for a year, and then return home to complete graduate school before starting my career as a teacher. But things changed.

I worked at Living with the Land at Epcot for my college program. During my year in Florida, this tiny little boat ride became my home, and the cast members that worked there were my family. I woke up excited to go to work everyday and would frequently ask to extend my shift in order to stay longer. I felt passionate about making magic for the guests and went out of my way to find new ways of doing so. I wanted to gain more knowledge and find new responsibilities in the company I worked for. I knew that what I did mattered and I, personally, wanted to further myself and take on more responsibilities in my location. But before I knew it, it was time to return home and back to the life I had planned for myself.

Coming home was really difficult because I simply did not feel the same passion for the work I was doing. Graduate school and teaching had been my plan since before I had entered college, but suddenly I was uncertain what I really wanted to do. 9 months later, I made the decision to move back to Florida and pursue a career with the Walt Disney Company, and the decision is something I will never regret.

Too often we find that we become trapped by a plan. We are stuck in a certain path and it can be scary to contemplate deviating from the safe road that is "set" for our future. I want to challenge you to do just that. Never be afraid to reach for your dreams and find the job that makes you happy and fulfilled. So often I hear college students talk about majoring in Economics or Business or Engineering or other "high paying" careers because their parents told them to, because they knew there would be job opportunities in that field after graduation, or various other reasons. These are not bad choices in themselves. It is good to have a career your parents approve of and it is good to choose something you know you can get hired in. This becomes bad when we choose a job for the money. Yes, your job should pay for you to live, but it should also be so much more than that.

I never want to become the person who is stagnant, pessimistic, and negative about their work. Your job should be so much more than a means of making a living. It should be something you are passionate about and something that motivates you to wake up in the morning because you know you are making a positive difference in the world.

Moral of the story: find whatever that is for you and go do it!