When I was little, my parents always told me I could be anything I wanted, as I’m sure most of yours did, too. As I got older, it became “You can be anything you want to be, if you’re willing to work toward it.” And now that I’m in college, I see what they meant.
College is hard. It’s hard to just pick a career path and decide at 20 years old what you want to do for the rest of your life. We all have that fear like, “What if when I’m 45 I hate this job and then I’m just stuck?” or like, “What if I suck at this in the real world?”
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But I think it’s important to trust your instincts. Trust that you know yourself better than anyone, and you know what you have a passion for, then do that. Choose a major that suits that passion. Because when you’re 45 and looking back, it won’t be about how much money you’ve made (or maybe it will be because we all need them dollah sign$) or how much work you’ve put into your job. It’ll matter if you’re happy, if you can wake up every day and love what you do.
I think that’s easy to forget in this day and age. It’s easy to get caught up in what’s convenient and not what makes you happy. Finding what you truly want to be may mean changing your major late in the game. Maybe it means changing your major three and four times.
Regardless, I think it’s better to explore your options before you’re too old to have that chance. But while you’re exploring remember this: find a major that makes you not dread going to class. I know that sounds crazy, but it really can happen. Find a major that gets you excited to talk about your future. Find a major that surrounds you with people who resemble you. Don’t choose something of convenience or because you think it’s too late to change your course or because it’s what your family has always done.
I was lucky enough to come to school and knew what I wanted to do the second I got here, and I’m thankful for that. But I always think, “What if I came in doing something different? Would I find my way to the right place?”
That’s a hard question to ask yourself, whether you’re following a path that makes you happy. But I say, no matter what it is, do it. Make sure you’re excited for what your future holds because you couldn’t see yourself doing anything else. Make sure you’re motivated.
I’m telling you, once you find that, a subject that sparks your interest and gets you motivated — hold on to it because that’s how you know you’ve chosen the right major.
