Last updated on March 23, 2016
By: Sara Keen, Editor-in-Chief
We have all been in a situation that leaves us questioning what to do. On one side, we have people telling us what we should do, and on the other is our own thoughts and experiences arguing to do something else.
One of these situations that many of us are facing right now is what we will do with the rest of our lives, or what we will major in. According to borderzine.com, 80% of students will change their majors at least once, and on average three times, before graduating.
It affects you and your future more than anything else. I could not count the number of times that someone has said, “I want to major in this so I can be this, but my parents/friends/family think it is stupid.”
When our entire lives centered on listening to these people as our elders, we can forget that we are adults and these decisions are ours to make. In a community college setting like at Volunteer State, many of the students still live with parents and just as many still do not know what they want to major in.
This can make college exceedingly difficult when the people you respect disagree with what you wish to do. It can cause additional stress, which no student needs, as you are not able to explore the field you want to be in.
That decision is ultimately yours and no one else’s. If you find a major and a career path that you love, then do not let someone else steer you away from it because they do not believe in it.
The phrase “choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life,” has substance to it for good reason. Certainly, you may not be able to do your favorite thing in life, but you can still find something you love.
You can look into your interests, take career quizzes or tests, and look at what you are good at. There is an entire array of career possibilities that you can look into, from photographing kittens to being paid for traveling.
I urge my peers to really think about the future that they want, and make their decisions based on that. You will be discouraged, ridiculed, and judged no matter what you do in life, so do what makes you feel fulfilled at the end of the day. You cannot aim to please everyone, and sometimes not even yourself, but you can certainly live life the way that you want to because it is yours to live.
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