I came into college being so sure of who I was and who I wanted to be. I had a plan for myself, one that seemed concrete. I was confident in the person I was, but truth is, that person was not who I am supposed to be.
For so long, I had convinced myself I was following my dreams. I take a lot of pride in being a young woman who immerses herself in her passions. When college came along, I vowed not to stray away from my true self. I kept true to that vow, but that was only because the person I thought I knew so well was not me at all. This obviously does not hold true for all aspects of my life, but it certainly did when it came down to my choices regarding college.
I started off college as a business management economics major. I was a self-proclaimed left-brain thinker. I was positive I would excel in my field. Here I am, 3/4 later, laughing at my confidence. It humors me because I was confident in a lie – a lie I had been telling myself for years. I was trying to be someone I am not, and it backfired. I performed quite poorly in all the classes I took for my major. In fact, I hated every single class because I found them all boring. I pushed through, however, because I viewed switching majors as giving up. I now know otherwise.
A couple of weeks ago, I had an epiphany. I finally realized I hate my major, not because I am not good at it, but because I am not meant to be a business major. This year has truly been a journey of finding myself, and I eventually did. After much thought, I decided to switch to a proposed art major. Deep in my heart, I always knew this is what I was supposed to be doing it, but I always denied it. I did not want to admit to being the right-brained thinker that I am. For several years, I told myself I did not want to do anything art-related because I did not want to be in my mom's shadow. Truth is, I just had an unrealistic fear of being myself. I was afraid of not living up to my potential and being told I was incapable of succeeding.
I feel much happier and much more relaxed now that I am on the right track. I am genuinely passionate about art, so I do not regret switching my major. I still want to someday start my own wedding planning business, but now, instead of the basis being business, it is art. You should not be afraid to experiment, but be sure to stay true to yourself. Your major will determine the course of four years of your life, so let it be reflective of who you are.
