This was a great little moment on the radio this morning: an hour devoted to different ideas about success. I'm going to go back and listen to the entire show, but this short segment (13:17) by Alain de Botton* is really very good. Play it in the background while you are doing something else, like folding your laundry.
Why I thought of you: because you are trying to figure out what your major will be; it feels urgent to you that you figure this out, and soon. Why? Because our identities are tied up so closely with our work. But honestly, how can someone who is just 17 or 18 years old know who they are or what they will be? You are just on the cusp.
Don't worry about WHAT you are. Worry instead about getting a good education. Become well educated. Study everything. For most of us, it is mistake to look at college from such a narrow, careerist point of view. I'm not saying that NO ONE knows what they want to be when they grow up, but I am saying that most don't, and that's fine.
*If you're trying to figure out why this guy sounds familiar...he wrote The Architecture of Happiness, a book that figured prominently in the movie, 500 Days of Summer.
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ReplyDeleteI haven't yet listened to it, but I am playing it now. I just wanted to say that I'm glad you pointed out that college isn't just about one's career and that it ought to be more broad and meaningful when it comes to our lives. Many make the mistake of thinking that college is just another hoop in the throng of things. They simplify it to being a gateway to the "American Dream": Get a job. Buy a car. Own a house. Start or join a family. Make tons of money. Retire old and worn out. Die "happy" and secure.
ReplyDeleteThe thing is, college can become so much more than another four years or more of punching in on time slots and slogging through the required paperwork. It's more than a dull ticket to another dull ticket.
I myself have no clue what I want to do because I love all subjects and cannot decide, so for me, college will not only be the beginning of my independent life but also my experimentation of subjects. Hopefully, others feel the same way, that college is, although at some times tedious, a new opportunity which teachers and parents and college recruiters only hint at.
Oh Ashlay, the link was broken. Did you find this segment? I've corrected the link. :P Sorry.
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DeleteI didn't take the time to find the segment, no, but it is definitely working now yay (:
DeleteMs. Fletcher can I start off with saying that I really love many of the things you give us to read and listen to such as this segment by Alain de Botton. With it being the end of our High School years and beginning to apply to colleges and universities and beginning to think of careers. This type of writings really help me to think about my goals, and if I have really felt if I have succeeded in life and if not how to achieve my success. I just feel that what you give us is really informational and can really help all of us in our academics and also in life.
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