What Should I Do With My Life?
Question: I have no clue where I am going. It feels as if everyone around me has it sorted out, knows that they want, but I don’t. I just don’t feel my calling yet and i’m really beating myself up about it. It’s not easy and it has just made me feel like I’m not meant for anything. I love art, people, nature, life. I don’t want a job that is so standard, lifeless. I just have no ideas and would really like some help. What should I do? Where do I start?
Response: First of all, I hear the intense feelings of being lost and alone in your message and I’m so glad that you chose to reach out and talk through this with someone. Figuring it all out on your own can be so crazy stressful. Choosing what you want to do with your life is such a big decision. It’s made even bigger by the pressure of choosing a career, a college, a major, etc. And you’re often expected to make these big decisions without a whole lot of information, and all at the same time. Pick a career without having worked a day in the profession, pick a college without ever having attended a class, pick a major without knowing if you really like the subject. The pressure put on people to make all these big decisions overwhelms everyone, believe me. You are not alone in feeling like it’s just all too much to process.
One thing that I’ve learned (and that I wish someone would have told me sooner) is that it is okay to not know the answers to these big questions right now. It’s okay to go to college with an undecided major, to start a job without knowing if you’ll love it and it will become your career, to do things that make you happy and feel fulfilled without there necessarily being an “end game” or a goal. The secret to life that no one really tells you is that the choices you make now will not likely be your final ones. So the pressure to have them be “right” isn’t really necessary. Choose something, anything, and then give yourself the grace to walk away from that later if you find that it isn’t for you. Embrace your choices, and try them on for size. If you have the courage to choose, and then change your mind or switch directions, you will be one of the few people who finds true happiness in life.
As you go on this journey and take the next steps in your life, please remember who’s walking beside you. Your heavenly Father wants you to succeed and He can help guide and direct you to experiences, people, and choices that will enrich your life more than you can possibly imagine. Lean on Him. Talk to Him, and walk with confidence.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6
