It’s no secret that in today’s society everything is focused on two ideas. One being an idea of societal expectations; YOUR worth. The other being YOUR future. It seems that the average millennial has the same issue everyone else is having, two easy questions being “What am I doing with my life, and what am I bringing to the table?” From the first days of kindergarten, many millennials have been told to do two things:

1. Go to a good college.

2. Get a really good job.

Some people can achieve one without the other, others can do both. These two life choices have been permanently marked into our brains, by the almighty power of the GPA. There are people who can get into college, but can not for the life of them find a job due to supersaturation in certain fields. Flip that on its head, however, how could someone give up a well paying, time-consuming job (i.e construction) to go back to school. The problem is everyone has been told: “If you aren’t somebody, you are a nobody.” I personally do not believe it is true.

A little background on myself. Hello, my name is Stephan Laurie. I am 18 years old and from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I am covered in tattoos, have several facial piercings, and currently live with a couple friends. I was not always on my own, though, I used to attend college, live with my family, and work a part-time job. Currently, I work full time to support myself. Money may be tight, and time may be scarce, but at the moment, I would not give up my life to go back to that. People may look at me and assume my outward appearance that I am doing nothing with my life; that I am a bad person. I maintained a steady GPA in high school that earned me several scholarships, I am an active member of my church, and decided after trying college it simply was not the right time.

The idea that you MUST go to college, especially right after high school; completely overrated. 13 years of mandatory schooling just to go on and keeping going is not everyone’s cup of tea, myself including. However I cannot speak for everyone, some have decided to keep going, that a break would be a deterrent, is an argument that makes sense to me. Looking at my peers, some are in school, my older friends are even getting married or having kids. Your late teens are an awkward phase, you either have your life together or you do not. I currently do not. This does not define me, I’m still a kid. My dinner most nights is a box of macaroni and cheese. I do not justify myself by claiming “I will go back to school.” I take it day to day and let my life unfold. From your perspective, the readers, I hope you can understand this as well. Your worth is not defined by what you are doing with your life, or how successful you are so early on. 600 years ago, you would be considered a full-fledged adult, you were more than likely married by 13. Times change, and so does society. Everyone places this huge burden on the young, I phrase it this way: You just had to ask to go to the bathroom, a necessary, natural bodily function. Now you are being asked to figure out what you want to do for the rest of your life. Even if you live to be 60 years old, ⅓ of your life you have not made your own decisions, now decide what to do for the other ⅔. Do not let society deem you worthy. More than likely you are worthy of being here and are still working towards what you want to do. Going to school in pursuit of a degree? Amazing. Working to support yourself or assist with your family? More power to you. Only got out of bed to make a bowl of cereal? No one is perfect, and at least you ate. On that last one I hope it was Cheerios, you have to watch your cholesterol.

In closing, define your own worth. Do not let someone else tell you that you are making the wrong decisions. Even if you are, you’ll figure that out eventually. Go to school, don’t go to school; it’s not the end of the world. Work 40 hours a week or 20, you’re still doing something. In between everything above and still pursuing? Never stop. Bringing back the quote “If you’re not a somebody you are a nobody.” That is not true. I prefer “If you’re not somebody, you will be.”