What is up with adults these days? - always pestering us about "what we want to be when we grow up" and "where we see ourselves in five, ten, fifteen years?" It's like they expect us at the age of twenty to know exactly what we want to do, exactly when we want to do it. How are we supposed to know two decades into our lives what we're supposed to do when we grow up? Don't get me wrong - I'm sure there are plenty of people who have the general idea of what they want to do post-graduation, but even they have some uncertainties. So why is it frowned upon when we answer with "oh, I'm not sure," or "I'm still trying to figure that out?"

In twenty years, we've graduated elementary school, middle school, and high school. In twenty years, we've played sports, learned to drive, and found friends who are always there for us. In twenty years, we've struggled, succeeded, and failed. In twenty years, we've probably confused ourselves more than we've actually been able to figure out who we're going to be once we enter the feared "real world."

Let's think about this. When we were little, we all dreamed about being astronauts, Broadway stars, professional basketball players. Now look at us. We're contemplating accounting, teaching, getting our MBAs and PHDs. Our dreams have changed throughout the years, so what makes us so sure that they won't change again when we're twenty-eight?

As we've grown up, expectations have become higher. The pressure for us to succeed has increased. And the stress we feel has become overwhelming. Is it really that hard for adults to understand that we just don’t know what and who we want to be in exactly five years from this day? There are some days when we can’t even figure out what we want to have for dinner.

Of course, many of us imagine ourselves getting married, having a family, raising kids, getting a dog, being the soccer mom – the list goes on. But pinpointing exactly what our careers will be, what we will wake up and do every day for the rest of our lives, what we will tell people what it is we do at our jobs, that’s still up in the air.

As much as our age tells people that we are indeed “adults,” our minds haven’t fully grasped that concept yet. We’re still in the “experimental” phase of our lives. We’re trying new things, crossing off the things we don’t like, and trying out the things we loved again. We’re testing the waters before we jump in. And even after we’ve jumped in, we’ll likely jump back out and do it all over again.

You see, as much as we would like to tell you that we know we’ll be the Vice President of Finance at a large insurance office, or the head engineer at Toyota, or the teacher of the year in the county, we just can’t. This world has so much to offer us, and everything that we do from this point on affects our future. We know that.

So is it really that bad if we can’t tell you in this instant what we’ll be doing in five to fifteen years from now? Is it really that bad if we can’t tell if what we’re studying in college is suited for us in the real world? Is it really that bad if all we really want in life is to be happy with where we are now, and for you to be just as happy for us?

So where do you see yourself in five years?

… As long as I’m happy, I don’t really care.