What am I going to do with My Life?

I’m a 21 year old getting ready to graduate and have absolutely no idea what I’m going to do with my life. Travel the world, research in my field, continue my education or fight fires? That is the big question. The past few weeks, scratch that, the past few years I have had many break downs and being the type of person who enjoys having everything planned out, not knowing what I’m going to do in August after I graduate is extremely terrifying. At this point in my life the way of figuring out this dilemma is opening every door possible from going to Grad school all the way to being an au pair in France or maybe even Sweden!

 Graduation is terrifying, but why? All I am getting is a piece of paper that says I have a degree in Exercise Science. Do I really want to work in that field? I chose that field because I enjoy the human body but is “enjoying” something enough to make a life out of it? I basically pinned myself in a corner 4 years ago when I checked Exercise Science off on my application because it’s a major with very limited career options. Since then I’ve met new people, discovered new interests and found out more about myself than I ever thought possible.  I guess that’s growing up… right?

 When I graduated High School, I had every bit of my life planned out from my career path (which wasn’t exercise science), neighborhood I would live in, the type of person I would marry, number of kids, their gender, names, sports they’d play, type of dog, what age I would marry and have kids all the way down to the toys I would buy my kids and cleaning products I would use in my house. Clearly I was a nutcase. Now, I still have nutcase tendencies, but I’m far more open to adventure and experiences now than I ever was. I don’t want to make plans for the next month based on plans I had made for 5 years down the road. I want to travel, and experience as much of the world as I can before settling down. I also believe that a long-term career will come when that door is ready to be open.

 Which leads me to say, I’m still young and have time to figure out what I want to do. Why try and set a life in stone and settle down at the age of 22 when we live in an incredible world with so much to teach us? I’m starting to believe that traveling and experiencing what the world has to offer is going to be my greatest education. I will be able to interact with different cultures, learn the history of cities, and develop skills I would never be able to learn in a classroom. 

 It has been a struggle to keep reminding myself that I’m not the only one who doesn’t know what they’ll do after college. It is difficult, especially when you read on facebook how many of your friends are getting jobs right out of college or even before they graduate. It makes you wonder what you are doing wrong, but the answer is nothing. You are in charge of your own life and if you are happy then you are headed down the right path. 

 The moral of this is, I’m young, I’m healthy, I’m intelligent and as long as I’m happy there is no right or wrong answer to what I choose to do after graduation. What I choose, not what my mother wants, father wants, family and friends want, but what I want.

 I hope you enjoyed reading my rant and understand that if you’re in this boat with me, know that we are not alone… it’s more like a cruise ship than a rowboat.

Thanks for reading,

Anna 

www.Beautyypie.wordpress.com