I have always struggled with indecision as far as long term plans. When I was growing up, my career interest changed on an almost weekly basis, which lasted through most of college. I was always jealous of people who knew or claimed to know exactly what they wanted to do with their life. But now I realize that its okay to have indecision in your twenties. In fact, its normal.
I first started out college as a chemistry major. I was not actually that interested in chemistry, but at the time, I thought I wanted to be a pharmacist because I had heard they usually made a very large salary and I had done well in AP chemistry in high school. It turns out I hated math and after several changes in my major, I settled on history. I was not sure what I was going to do with my degree, but at least it was in something I liked.
Fast-forward to my senior year.
During my last semester of college, I was extremely stressed about what I was going to be doing after college. I thought I was about to graduate with a worthless degree and was going to end up spending my whole life working in retail or some other dead end menial job. I can say without a doubt this was the most stressful time period of my life this far.
After graduation, I moved back to my hometown, feeling like none of my expectations of college had happened and it was a waste of four years. But after some temp jobs I got a job working at a large bank. It was not the most prestigious job, but hey, it was better than working in retail or as a waiter.
It was at this time that I started reaching out to my former peers asking “how was their post grad life going?” In doing so, I learn two major realizations. The first was that the people who successful in high school and college were not necessary that much more successful than anyone else in the real world. And the second was that even many of the people who had always know what they wanted to do when they graduated college found out their dream job was not what thought it would be like.
Really its illogical to try to expect people in their late teens and early twenties to decide what they want to do for the next forty to fifty years of their life. Your twenties is the time your personality goes through its greatest changes and ends with it finally reaching maturity sometime before thirty. So why should you be expect to decide what you want to do with your life before your personality which is basically who you are is not even fully until an aged after most people graduate college?
The point I am trying to make with this post is its normal to not know what you want to do with your life in your twenties. Plenty of very successful people had no idea what they were doing with their life until they were thirty or older. It all comes down to being adaptable and keeping an open mind.
The Professional Website of Josh Young 