Finding your passion and trying to figure out what truly interests you can be challenging —especially being a college student since there's this pressure to have everything figured out. The hardest part is going through moments where you think you've found your calling, then a second later you're unsure about it.
Nevertheless, there will come a point where you will find that spark about something that interests you — it just takes time to search for it. For me, I didn't realize what I truly wanted to do up until my sophomore and senior year of high school.
Growing up, I always had an idea of what I wanted to be and wanted to do in the future, which was becoming a teacher. But as I went through high school, I started to experience different hobbies and interests until I found writing and English. My sophomore of high school is when I realized I truly enjoyed English as a subject and that it was something I excelled at.
In the beginning, I just figured I would teach English since I've always wanted to be a teacher as well. However, my senior year of high school, I began experimenting with journalism and realized how much I loved writing, especially for an audience. I always journaled as a hobby, but being able to create and voice ideas for the world to see was something different.
Don't get me wrong though, despite having an idea of what interested me, even as a freshman in college I still have moments where I'm conflicted about what I'm truly passionate about. I've even had moments where I doubted and questioned what I was passionate about. There came a point where I going through a crisis of not knowing what I was good at — I felt as if I was at a dead end.
But I knew that reading and writing was something I felt strongly about. I love being able to have a creative voice and write things that come from the heart. Most importantly, hearing other's feedback and knowing that I can somehow inspire or impact other's with my writing makes me enjoy what I do even more.
Overall, I know I'm passionate about what I do because of the ideas constantly spewing from my mind and how excited I get when bringing those ideas to life! I also knew I was passionate about writing when I became incredibly motivated and excited about the future of pursuing these interests. Though I haven't let go my passion for teaching either - whether it's teaching or writing, a goal of mine to make an impact on either path!
Moral of the story, it's okay not to have your interests figured out yet, but if you do then that's great! Once you feel that certainty and excitement about something that interests you, that's when you know you've found your calling. Once, you've got a hold of that niche, hold onto it, pursue it, and believe it!