We walk a pretty straight path in life. The moment we start our first day of pre-school or kindergarten, we are hopping onto the first in a long line of carefully laid out stepping stones in our life plan. Get good grades in high school and tailor your extracurricular activities so that you'll get into a good college. Choose a practical college major and maintain a GPA high enough to get you into grad school or get a job after college. Apply for the right internships. Make the right connections. Earn a good salary. Save for retirement.

It's how life works, in organized steps and as we grow and age we follow the requirements to move through life. This has value. These are worthy goals, there is nothing wrong with wanting to live a life where you provide for yourself and whatever kind of family you might choose to have. In fact, these are some of my goals. I want this.

But, I have moments where I question why. Why did I stay up all night working on a project? Why did I sit through meetings of a club I had no desire to be a part of? What do these things get me? Were they worth it?

That's the important question that we don't ask ourselves enough. They can be. The monotonous moments can be worth it.

Are you staying up all night because your major is honestly taking you toward a life that you love? Worth it.

If that's not the case, is whatever nine-to-five job that you completely hate what is financing your dream of having a rock band with your friends and playing shows on weekends? Worth it.

Do your night shifts at work allow you to be home during the day painting or writing poetry or pursuing your love of photography? Worth it.

Deciding to halt your career because what matters to you is getting to raise your kids because that's what makes you happy? Worth it.

You know what isn't worth it? The regret that comes from spending a life that's so consumed by the things you hate but have to do, that you lose what you love.

We are so constrained as a society by the paths that we are taught to follow. The beaten path worn down by the generations before us, the standards that they've pushed towards. We are told as little children that we can be whatever we want to be, as we sit through career day and view the practical choices of what we should be.

I challenge you this: if you can be whatever you want to be, be happy.