Now that I am a graduate, it’s common for people to ask me what I want to do with my life. Sometimes I wish I have a crystal ball I can gaze into and would reflect my future with clarity. I have dreams, hopes and ambitions for my future but truth be told, the future is totally not in my control.
It’s also easy to just ‘get into’ the next stage in life, it’s as though it’s natural progression- primary school, secondary school, tertiary education then university. After 4 years of late nights (whether it’s for parties or rushing a paper) and freedom, it’s time to get a job. Without a job, society tells you that you’re nothing, that you’re wasting what your parents’ and teachers’ have invested in you. There’s hardly any thinking on your part being done as you simply ‘just go with the flow’.
This article ‘What Are You Going to Do With That?‘ by William Deresiewicz is a timely reminder for myself as I begin my career search.
And most of all, don’t play it safe. Resist the seductions of the cowardly values our society has come to prize so highly: comfort, convenience, security, predictability, control. These, too, are nets. Above all, resist the fear of failure. Yes, you will make mistakes. But they will be your mistakes, not someone else’s. And you will survive them, and you will know yourself better for having made them, and you will be a fuller and a stronger person.
