Posted by Susan J on December 15, 2003, at 13:11:59
In reply to Finding a career, posted by Civ on December 15, 2003, at 11:09:14
Hiya, Civ,
I totally agree with Penny. Keep the options open.
>>If you don't find anything else appealing in school (ie another major), then I'd stick with the business degree and get it over with. That degree opens doors, and that's always a nice thing.
But people these days definitely change jobs often, and are more and more changing careers entirely. I worked as a support staff person in a university athletic department, worked as an investigator in jail, worked as a personnel specialist, then an employee benefits planner, then a legislative counsel. All entirely different. :-) I'm 36 and have had at least 4 *real* careers.....
>>I worry about making money, being able to provide for a family, and things like that.
<<If I were you, I'd just worry about supporting yourself. Your future spouse will have fine job skills and when you plan marriage or whatever, you can sit down and decide if both of you will continue working, who's going to keep working, who's not, what income goals you have, etc.
I know there are a few things I love.
>
> 1. humor
> 2. sports
> 3. communication<<Have you ever thought of working in Sports Information? That's what I did, in two different athletic departments. You get to deal with communication, and you get to watch tons of athletic events and write about them! The salary is nothing to write home about, unless you work for a large university with great teams, but it's life-sustaining. And if you are doing something you love.....well, that's worth all the money in the world, right?
>>I have a lot of interest in being a sports talk radio show host. I did this at my college radio station for a few months and really enjoyed it. I felt alive for one of the few times in my life.
<<OK, remind me to read all of the post before posting.....radio talk show host -- very similar to Sports Information and if you started in SI, you make TONS of contacts!>> but I guess I still worry about not making enough money, not being good enough, etc. It's just a lot of self-doubt and confusion.
<<I dunno what your financial situation is like right now, but while you are in school, why don't you try to get a job in the athletic department and see if that type of thing is interesting? When I worked there, I, little minion student, met tons of TV and radio and paper personalities/columnists and all that. Plus, you'd get some experience. you'd see it's not as hard as it looks, and it would help you develop more self confidence. BTW, whenever you change (or start) a career, there is an accepted learning curve. You are not expected to know everything right off the bat.>
> Did you guys know what you wanted to do when you were 21? If you had inclinations, did you actually follow your heart or just settle for something else?
<<I wanted to be a sports photographer. That's why I got into Sports Information. I would have continued with it but I had also been very interested in police work and stuff like that, so when the investigator position opened up, I took it. Now I'm a lawyer.I don't think many people actually feel passionate about their careers. If you find that, that's absolutely wonderful! If not, then you need to search out other things in life that you feel passionate about. Doing volunteer work, starting a family, painting horrible paintings in the basement that no one will ever see but that you absolutely adore. That type of thing.
Life is a journey, and you are just starting it. You won't be holed into any particular path if you don't want to. You will continue to make choices forever, and sometimes they made lead you away from your goals. But you can always get back there if you want them badly enough. I don't know many people who've taken a totally straight road in life. I tend to think the bumpy curvy ones are more interesting anyway. :-)
Good luck!
Susan
poster:Susan J
thread:290011
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20031207/msgs/290058.html