They say these are the best years of your life and that they would love to be back where you are now. But then they pressure to have a plan and to have everything work out perfectly all the time.
If you fall off course, there's a ton of self-inflicted pressure on top of the pressure to be perfect from your peers, family, instructors, etc. I'm here to tell you if you do fall off course, and your plan doesn't last, you are going to be fine.
These times are hard on all of us. You may think the person or career path or school you have chosen is the perfect match for you. You couldn't be happier to be where you are now. But then, out of nowhere, something fails. The thing that many people don't understand is that putting so much pressure on young people these days is not beneficial to them. It's a different time now, and stress levels in young people are higher than ever. We are told to dream big from a very young age, and the reality doesn't always sink in.
You may not be able to be that rockstar-astronaut-elementary school teacher that you dreamed of being when you were 8 years old. When a person is forced to decide what they want to do for the rest of their life, after being stuck in a routine based system such as those found in high school, it can come as quite a shock.
The bottom line is accepting the harsh truth that the decisions you make may not always be the right ones. You may find that your friends aren't the type of friends you want to be surrounded by, or that the job choice you decided to pursue is not really for you. Maybe you're no longer interested in a person anymore after being in a long-term relationship. You may even find that the school you decided on isn't for you, and you may feel you need to drop (or transfer) out and do what's best for you. At one point or another, everyone has had feelings like these.
Even if you think the path you're on is absolutely perfect for you, you may change your mind. And I'm here to tell you one thing: You will survive, and you will come out on top.
Think about the movie "The Lion King." Simba wanted nothing more than to be the mighty king of the jungle. He challenged himself, and he set his mind to follow in his father's footsteps to be the best king there had ever been. He wanted it so badly until he was thrown off course and his whole plan changed. Long story short (in the case for some odd reason you don't know "The Lion King"), he found his way and ended up being better than he ever thought he would; even after he wanted to give up his dream. Simba ended up fine, and even though you aren't a cartoon lion, you will be just fine too.
Not knowing where you want to go from here, or changing your mind about your path is an experience to learn from. You will find the place where you are meant to be. I'm a strong believer that everything happens for a reason, and that you will be in the right place at the exact time you need to be. Life is about finding a balance of what you need and what you want. Once those aspects of your life achieve a satisfying plateau where they are one in the same, you will find yourself much happier and more optimistic.
It's OK to not know what you're doing at the moment. It's OK to not follow the path that may or may not have been paved for you. As long as you keep a level head and focus on making life a little better for yourself each day, everything will work out. The reality is people change and plans may not always work the way you imagine them to, but I can tell you first hand, that things will fall into place, and everything will be right in the end. Be sure to use your resources and support systems to your advantage. Set your goals as high as the sky and the things you can achieve are unlimited.
