Where do you see yourself in five years?
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
The two questions that cause any student to have a mini heart attack and to have the actual “shook” reaction.
Compared to high school, the questions were “what school do you want to go to? What major do you want?” The high school questions are now a heck of a lot easier to answer, but at the time the questions produced the same “shook” reaction.
However, what hasn’t changed is the fact that we are supposed to have answers to these questions. As college students, we are expected to know where we will be in five years and ten years -- like we are fortune tellers. As a society, we focus on plans and the future of our lives, but sometimes as students, we just have no clue.
What if you don’t know where you see yourself in five years or ten years?
What if you do know where you want to be but things turn out differently?
There is a certain beauty in having a plan and a clear direction in where you want to go. It allows you to focus on what you want, but in focusing it can lead to being closed minded about other possibilities. There is also a certain beauty in not having a plan because it allows many possibilities and the ability to explore.
Whether you know where you want to be in five or ten years or not, it’s okay. It’s okay to have a plan and it’s okay to not have a plan. Not to be cheesy, but college is truly about exploration. Sometimes we forget that we're supposed to enjoy exploring because we get bogged down by the questions and unknowns of the future. We also forget that good things take time. With all these deadlines it often feels like we don't, and that there just aren't enough hours in a day. We like immediacy and careers and people aren't like that. Your degree, relationships, classes, and the general things we enjoy, takes time. Adulthood is on the horizon and the dreaded responsibilities are looming, but so are endless possibilities.
Focus on the possibilities and the exploring you want to do, not the end product.
I’ll leave you with this last thing: when I get overwhelmed, have that “shook” reaction, want the future to be here already, or just simply forget to have fun:
Remember, “You’ll pass that class. You’ll get that degree. You’ll start that dream job. You’ll marry your bff. Relax, good things take time.”
