I cannot even begin to count how many times in the past year I have looked around – in the midst of a chaotically busy day – and thought to myself, “What am I doing here?” One of the worst things that could happent to busy people, busy students in particular, is to get caught up in what we are doing and forget to consider the big picture. So focused on studying for finals, so intent on going to work and on finishing projects, we skate through with blinders on. The real danger in this crucial part of our lives, when our eyes are being opened to so many new and different things, occurs when we are too busy to reevaluate our goals and the paths we plan to take to achieve them. Too many students turn around after four years and think, “Why did I get my degree in this? Do I really want a career in this field?” I am one of these students.
With just a year left before I will be getting my BA in forensic psychology from John Jay I am nearly 100% certain I do not want to be a psychologist. The trouble is I am just one class away from completing the course requirements for my major. My answer to this problem has been to diversify my studies by picking up two minors (history and philosophy), and to spend this next year searching for what career path I would like to pursue. It is a really amazing feeling, when you feel free to explore and see what is out there. I have to say I am enjoying the search entirely.
Why the blog post, then? Well honestly, I feel I have fallen victim to the myth that you have to know what you want to do for the rest of your life before you even start college. All of my friends were picking majors, going into specialized programs, deciding what and where they would be in twenty years. So, I made a plan too. And, I liked my plan. I still do, but the truth is I have a million interests that I would like explore before I settle on any one thing.
This realization – that I have options and that I should consider them seriously – came to me over the winter break, and I have written before about it here. I feel that such an epiphany could have and should have come sooner, however. I truly believe it would have, had I not been so busy in my first three years at John Jay. I ran from class to school to volunteering to meetings to class to homework and friends. I never had time to think about what I wanted to do once I graduated, so I simply did not think about it at all. Now I am too invested in a major I have little interest in to change it.
When I started writing this blog, I did not consider myself an expert in scheduling. I thought that much of what I wrote here would be about mistakes I have made from which others could hopefully learn. This is certainly one of those cases. My advice to all students is to make time every month, every week even, to seriously and whole-heartedly question everything you know and think you want. Get experience in the field in which you think you would like to have a career before you commit to it fully. Be open to other possibilities and never turn down opportunities because they don’t seem to be related to what you think you want. If there is one thing I would change about my time at John Jay, it would be the mindset that I had for the first three years. I was very close-minded. I was too narrowly focused. I never considered opportunities that would expand my knowledge, because they did not fit into what I thought I wanted to do. I deeply regret that.
This summer reevaluate your goals. Think long and hard about what you want to do in the future, then label your goals as tentative. Things always change with time. The MaryBeth from five years ago would be confused by the me now, but that’s the fun of growing up and maturing. Do not let your busy schedule prevent you from seeing the bigger picture. Always take time to critically look at where it is you are moving, lest you end up somewhere you do not want to be. Click here for your two minutes of procrastination.
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