Of all the people I know, I would say I am not the most spontaneous out of all my friends.
I have been known on occasion to stray from my path but for the most part I get into a routine and I stick with it.
But this summer I knew that wasn't gonna be an option.
One reason being that I knew I didn't and shouldn't go home for the summer to just do whatever until the fall. My favorite summer job wasn't on the table at all this summer so I was going to have to do something that mirrored the summer after my freshman year: I worked at a baby retail store that shall remain nameless and I was bored all summer.
As a new sophomore, that summer had been pointless for me; it didn't challenge me to find out what I would want to major in. I literally just made some money and spent all of it by the time I went back to school. That part of my college career wasn't very driven because I didn't know what I wanted to do and used that as my excuse to not move forward.
As a now senior I cringe thinking about that time I should have been doing something productive. I didn't do it all on my own I had to reach out and find support which led to my favorite professor. Now I have a fabulous internship and two jobs working in my second favorite city, Charleston.
However during my sophomore summer, even if it meant doing an internship that wasn't my dream job at least I would have had an internship and a reference that showed I was trying.
This is not my typical uplifting article that preaches to be yourself or just go with your own flow. While those are both important it is also important to challenge yourself.
Be smart and utilize your time. Don't use the "I don't know what I want to do" bullshit as an excuse. I did and it's not cute after a while. We have so many resources around us to figure it out that you just need to get off your ass and do it.
Secondly, don't talk yourself out of a potential opportunity because you are scared to succeed like I was. I can't tell you why I felt that way but I was terrified to be successful. I didn't believe I was good enough and I didn't think anyone else would think I was good enough either.
Rome wasn't built in a day but it sure as hell wouldn't have been built at all if the Romans shrugged their shoulders because they didn't believe they could build a great city.
The Romans were incredibly ambitious, remember that little thing called the Roman Empire?
Get up and give yourself a chance. Get out of your comfort zone because a worthwhile ride in life doesn't happen in a box.