As a college instructor, I meet a wide variety of students –
some are freshmen just starting out and some are graduating and ready to move
into their career. In both cases, there is often a lot of apprehension about
their future career:
·
Did I make the right choice?
·
Will I make the right choice?
·
What if I got a degree and never find a job?
·
What if I can’t ever pay off my school loans?
There is so much uncertainty at this point in life,
especially if you’re young and looking for your first career, but let’s examine
why it’s so difficult to choose a career path in the first place.
The possibilities are
limitless. While we can all agree that having someone else choose your career
for you wouldn’t be fun and probably wouldn’t end up with you finding your true
calling, it sure would make things easier! But in a day and time when
absolutely anyone can go to college and get vocational training, the sky’s the
limit! Choosing from an infinite list versus being an apprentice to your dad
(as in ye olden days).
You aren’t confident
in your strengths. Something I often see in young students is the inability
to zero in on one’s own strengths. In a way, our culture has primed us for this
by promoting a society in which everyone is good at everything (which
definitely has its place and can be true) without singling out individual
students for recognition. It often helps to ask your parents, teachers, and
close friends what they see as your strengths and if there are any career
fields in which they see you thriving.
You are embarrassed
by your strengths or don’t think they can make you a living. How often does
a young adult say to a parent, “I’d like to paint houses for a living – I’ve
done it every summer, I’m good at it, and I enjoy it”? While I can’t imagine
the look on the parent’s face, I can tell you that I just (happily) hired a
painter for what amounted to $125/hour to paint my dining room (painting is
something I’m not good at and loathe). Can you make a good living painting?
Yes! Will it be popular as a new idea among your family members? Maybe not.
You think you’re
going to be stuck. Choosing a career that you’ll have to do from now to
when you die or retire? The stakes are so high that of course you’re going to
be anxious about it! But consider this: you’re never stuck. You choose a degree
that you think suits you, you go to work in that field and hate it after a few
years, and you…move on to a different career path! The good thing about careers
is that once you have proven that you’re a hard, capable, smart worker,
switching careers is just like a lane change. You might have to get more
education or training, but you’ve already proven you’re capable. You’re never
stuck (unless you choose to be).
At the end of the day, keep in mind that you are the only
person who has to live your life. Your parents and family want what’s best for
you, but following their same life path may not be your same path to happiness
and success (and you still need to be happy and successful long after your
parents are gone). Spend some time gathering ideas from other people, but then
spend more time thinking on all the information you’ve gathered by yourself to
find the best career starting point for you!
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