Throughout my life, I’ve been told to keep the future in mind. It has always been clear to me there are certain steps each person has to go through in order to reach certain goals. I’ve learned life is just a chain reaction of events. We do one thing in order to do another thing, which will allow us to do something else, and the cycle continues forever.

For instance, I needed to do well in school so I could build my intelligence and continue my education. This allowed me to go to college. Now, I need to work toward a degree in order to get a job and be able to support myself someday.

However, this is the point where I get lost. I’m studying Electrical and Computer Engineering, but I don’t really know what I want to do with it yet. There isn’t a specific job where I’m like, ooo, that’s definitely for me.

Right now, I’m going through the motions of what a productive young adult should do, and I’m hoping I’ll know what I want to do by the time graduation approaches. So that gives me just under three years to figure things out. Hmm, I remember when three years used to seem like a long time…

Then, I’m surrounded by people who know exactly what they want from their career. They know everything from what field they want to work in to what places they want to work at. More impressively, they know the kind of work that they want to do in order to make a difference.

Sometimes, I think about the people who know everything they want to do, and I think about how maybe that’s not the way I’m supposed to approach life. Maybe I’m supposed to live in the moment and enjoy life. Then, I can apply for opportunities as they arrive.

However, this idea conflicts with my inner philosophies. I’m a firm believer that people need to work for what they want in life and opportunities rarely just present themselves. I believe that we have to seek out the opportunities we want, which require a degree of planning, thus forcing us to drift away from the idea of living in the moment.

To sum things up, I’m confused. I know my long term goals. I want marriage and a family, but I know those aren’t things I have to worry about right now. Will I even want to work when I have those? Who knows? Not me. Not yet.

I’ve come to the realization that I’m missing the stage in between where I currently am and where my long term life goals are. However, I’m not actually that worried about it. Right now, I’m taking the steps I need in order to give myself options for when I am ready to make some important career and life decisions.

The great thing about the future is that we don’t have to obsess about it in the current moment. We have time to reflect and prioritize our various wants. So my question is, do you know what you want for the future, or are you presently coasting through life like I am?