I’M BACK! Hey everyone, I stopped writing for the odyssey after a semester of creating content for them last fall. I was going through some confusing decisions that lead me to think i needed less on my plate. Now that I have figured it out, I am back and willing to share; which leads me to the topic of discussion!

HOW IN THE WORLD DO WE DECIDE WHAT TO DO FOR THE REST OF OUR LIFE AT 17-20 YEARS OLD!

I am currently a junior in college and for the past 3 years I thought I wanted to be an elementary school teacher. This summer I had been gathering recommendation letters into the program, taking a summer class for a gpa booster and getting everything in order to apply to the education program in the fall. Just a few steps away from my future. I wasn’t very excited about doing all these things and it felt more like a job. I made a decision at 17 years old that I wanted to be an elementary school teacher and felt like I was betraying that decision if I changed my mind. However, as I was taking a teaching exam for 5 hours straight to apply to the program it dawned on me that I really really did not want to do this anymore.

The worrying began when I finally listened to myself and made the decision to change my major. Questions ran through my head such as: What will my family say? What will I do next? Oh gosh, how long do I have to be in school now? What’s my new major?. Countless questions arose but one for sure stuck with me which was: How in the world do we decide to do with the rest of our life at twenty years old? I finally found the answer and it’s that we NEVER decide what to do with the rest of our lives. We are humans and we are constantly changing! Sure, you can think you’ve chosen your career for life and maybe you have but for those of you out there that realize you aren’t on the right path anymore or simply don’t like your career/major, don’t be afraid! Take the plunge and start a new journey because without a little adventure and last minute decision making your life would be a little less interesting or more stable, you choose!

If you do want to take a different path in your college endeavors make sure you do some self reflection. Two of my bestfriends both told me that, “you need to be selfish”. If you take the time to self reflect you can think about what makes you happy and how can you turn that into a career. It may seem like the scariest thing in the world to decide your major isn't for you anymore, you could be a senior in college and the thought of having to stay and pay for anymore schooling is terrifying. However, what's worse is having to continue on in life and look back wishing you changed your major. However, you can always go back to school and do something else, there is no limit to how far you want to expand your education (except maybe all the loans, but you get my point) like parents used to say when we were young, "you can do anything you set your mind to" and I sure as heck hope they were right!

Needless to say everyone's number one goal in life and for their career choices should be to be happy! A quote I love is, "If you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life" and this should speak to not only to college students but to everybody. I chose to go into English and publishing for my never ending love for books. If you have a love for nature and keeping the Earth clean, go into environmental science. Maybe you have a knack for sales and really enjoy doing it, go into business. If you love making art, become an art major! There are so many reasons to decide not to go into a certain line of work but what should trump all them is what you know you really want to do. For those of you have no idea, it's okay not to know. You may never know and that's okay too.

I hope this article has helped any of the lost and confused college students, like myself. Just remember, you have to do a little soul searching until you find out what the next chapter in your life is and as most things go; when you know, you know. All in all, don’t be afraid to take the plunge, to listen to your heart, and to grow.

destiny