I am a sophmore in college and I am starting to realize that I really dont want to do what I am doing with my life, but I cant figure out what the hell else to do...I kinda want to start over and go to tech school to become a mechanic or something...I am way to hands on to sit at a desk all day long.......ahhh I hate not knowing what to do with my life......what does everybody else do for a living/anybody else been through this?

 

i think 95% of normal people go through this. im a junior in college. the only sure thing that im heading towards is the idea that i want to make changes. whether it is in my community, the public school system around here, in one kids life, yadda yadda...thats what i want to do. that is a VERY broad idea, which makes it easier to head towards, but makes it more difficult at the same time.

my suggestion, pick something you like, and just go. dont stay put in life, thats the only time you know you arent going anywhere. even if that something you pick turns out to be wrong 5 years down the road, you cant exactly say it was a waste.

im a human development major, i currently am a mentor / tutor for a non-profit and may be looking to co-coordinate another program next year. can i do this for the next 40 years? :dunno: but am i going to stop to figure out exactly what i am going to do? :no:

 

yeah...I feel like I am still so young to just up and drop what I have been working on and go in a different direction but at the same time I dont want to be doing what I am doing anymore....I know that I am not the first nor the last to feel this way, I am just at the height of pondering my life since it is four in the morning and I cant sleep and just kinda wanted some input like you have given me...I appreciate it...and keep it coming...sometimes it just helps to know that other people are just as lost as I am ya know.

 

Unless you're about to fail out of college, stay there. When I was a freshman I had the exact same thoughts. I felt like the only reason I was here was because I was a smart kid and the thing for smart kids to do is to go to college. I didn't really have much interest in doing school because it sure felt good to say "screw it, I'm a senior" when I was in high school and I hadn't gotten back into trying to be a student yet. I knew I liked cars and I knew I would like to learn how to be a mechanic. I seriously contemplated dropping out and going to tech school but eventually I realized that I wouldn't be living up to my potential. Sure I could have been content wrenching on cars for the next 25 years, but if I stayed in college and got a degree I would have so many more future opportunities. I decided to stay the course and get my degree. If at some point in the future I decide that what is going to make me truly happy in life is to work as a mechanic then I can always go to tech school and get certified. But you're only college-aged once and if you have the opportunity to experience it I think it's well worth the effort.

 

yea, just realize its normal. i know people that are in their 30s and 40s and they are going..."wtf am i going to do in life..."

i know some schools offer courses that allow you to "find" yourself. maybe you should give that a shot. i took one of those at a community college when i was there last semister...that class kinda reinforced what i already knew about myself.

also, i dont think there is anything "wrong" with just dropping everything and heading in another direction. and you are a sophomore, so you havent taken many upper division stuff yet right? mainly general requirement classes?

if you think being a mechanic is something you might like, take a couple additional classes on it. :dunno: cant knock it till you try it, nor love it till you try it.

 

Well the other thing is that just because you're studying something doesn't mean that's what you'll do for the rest of your life. All college is about is learning to be independent, learning to think for yourself, and learning to solve problems and think analytically. Oh yeah and drink lots of beer and hit on chicas :naughty:. Seriously though, it's not like you're dedicating your life to whatever you're studying. You're just learning to think in that context, your life will still be full of opportunities to go whichever way you want.

 

I dunno it just seems like the only time I am really happy with in the learning department is when I am learning about or workin on my car...the only reason I went to college instead of straight to tech school is because I know I love working on MY car but who knows if I want to deal with other peoples problems too. I dont plan on droping out anytime soon, but that is a good idea to maybe take a class or two extra in some automotive area to kinda get my feet wet and see if I like it. Maybe I will end up hating it and dive into my school books for fear of having to be a mechanic...lol

 

I skipped the crisis part and went right to mechanic. I am training to be a Tech for Toyota.

 

ive had quite a major crisis myself. right out of highschool i went to college because in my school thats what everyone did. but all through highschool i had slacked off cause i thought it was bullshit, and when i got to college i just kept slacking cause i didnt know what i wanted to do and it was easy. two years later i was kicked out and i was just like "crap, now what do i do?". i tried to get back in but they said i have to be away for a year, so right off the bat i had to find a job. it was spring and i wanted a good hard outdoors job so the first place i applied was a slate roofing job and i got it. worked that for about six months and boy was i ready for school again. the combination of 55 hours a week of hauling rock up ladders and whatnot, and listening to my colleagues bitch about not enough money, too much child support, and alcoholism, really got me revved up to continue my education. i decided to continue with what i wanted all along which is mechanical engineering. went to community college to get some grades so i could get back into OSU, and here i am. hopefully this week ill be accepted back in. :cheers:

if i could do it all over again, i would probably have taken a year off after highschool to get my priorities straight since i really needed that. i recommend you do what everyone here is saying and continue with your education, even if you're not 100% about it. you can always change your major. the important thing i think is just to not quit and keep challenging yourself.

 

one word:


Military


go with ROTC if you school has it. If not, finish your college, and try to go through OTC/OCS - Officer Candidate School. its a ~12 week program that will train you to be an officer.

You'll be in the top 10% that is in charge of the other 90%, the enlisted. Good pay, exciting lifestyle in comparison to the rest of the civilian world and benefits right off the bat, and when/if you get sick of it, you get out after your time is put in, and you've got a resumee an inch thick. Not to mention, all the guys I talk to who have gotten out say that when they were in, their work actually meant somthing. Now they're just mindless drones doing a job that doesn't matter to anyone.


In all honesty, I don't give two shits bout school. Only reason I'm in college is to get my comission in he Air Force.