When I was growing up I went through several phases when it came to how I answered the question.. “What do you want to do when you grow up?”
At first it was a princess.. then a pop star (aka I wanted to be THE OLD Brittney Spears or Baby Spice).. then I wanted to be a doctor… then a forensic scientist, because what teenager doesn’t love watching CSI and want to work for Horatio Caine at some point in their life… and several other phases until I finally had came to college and actually had to make a decision and answer that dreadful “What do you want to do when you grow up,” question.
Throwback to being a senior in high school and all my friends being able to tell me not only exactly what they wanted to do when they grew up and how they were going to get there but the worst part was they ALL seemed to know what they wanted to major in. But as for me, I couldn’t even decide what I wanted on my subway sandwich, so how was I going to be expected to tell you what I wanted to do for the rest of my life?
So instead of knowing before going to college I literally went to college looking for an answer. I wanted to find a major that I enjoyed and could make a decent amount of money. So I went through the options.. doctor.. veterinarian.. lawyer.. but all of those science classes really weren’t my style.
After my first semester of freshman year and still being confused, I really thought I was the only one who didn’t have my life together. But the truth is, a lot of people come into college, like myself, with an undecided major or, also like myself, switch their majors multiple times. Trying to decided what you want to do for the rest of your life isn’t easy and isn’t something most 18ish year olds are ready to answer.
Some people try to impress their parents, others try to just focus on how much money they can make, and some, have known exactly what they wanted to do since they were 10 years old.
It took me a long time to figure it out but the truest statement I have heard about how to plan your future is do what you love and love what you do. If you are in a major or searching for a career that is making you anything short of happy (obviously college comes with stress so happy minus the stress) than maybe it isn’t for you. Remember, your major will impact the rest of your life.
It took me a few semesters before I realized that maybe I could do one of those dream jobs that I wanted when I grew up. I went through a phase where I wanted to be a TV star anyways. Now, I’m majoring in Broadcast Journalism and I’m going to make my ten year old self, and present day self, very proud come the first day on the job as a news reporter. More importantly, I finally have an answer to that burning question “What do you want to do when you grow up?”