Learning To Preserve My Creativity

One thing that I have struggled with throughout college is the feeling that everyone around me has their life figured out. It’s easy to put this pressure on yourself, especially senior year, that you have to have everything lined up at some point.

Going into my freshman year, I thought I knew exactly what I wanted to do. My ideal situation was going to a school in Los Angeles and getting accepted into their film program. Obviously, this is not how things turned out, but I couldn’t be more thankful.

It’s common for interests to fluctuate. Something that I have realized throughout my four years here is that very few people know exactly what they want to do. Additionally, trying to decide what you want to do for the rest of your life at the age of 18 is a very tricky, unrealistic concept most times.

Something that has prolonged the process of figuring out exactly what I want to do after college has been the stigma surrounding creative majors. Sacred Heart is largely popular for its health science and business majors, and I think a culture has developed at many schools where these kinds of majors are more celebrated.

Being a creative person in today’s monetary world is tough. I believe that’s why I have felt a little behind in the process of figuring out my true interests.

I have always questioned if I’m doing the right thing or making the right decisions. Due to the stigmas surrounding the arts and creative paths, I wondered if there was more that I could be doing. I didn’t feel like my interests were enough.

Many thoughts have circulated through my brain in the last years of my college experience. Should I go to law school? Should I go into the medical field? Should I be a psychologist?

Statements like, “You don’t need to go to school for that” have been permanently ingrained in my mind when I think about my path. When others ask what I’m in school for, a sense of nervousness comes over me at times that they might be disappointed in my response.

It sometimes feels like there isn’t a spot at the table for creative majors. On the other hand, what would the world be without creativity? The world needs our visions and our imagination. Without it, everything would be black and white.

The people who reign me in from questioning what I want to do are my parents and my brother. My mom has always told me that it would be a great disservice to myself to not follow a path where I could be creative. My family has always encouraged me to follow what is going to make me the happiest, and that is something that I am wholeheartedly grateful for. Making them proud and having them see me happy is one of my biggest motivations.

This year has been a time of self-discovery. I’ve realized that I shouldn’t sacrifice my interests and my abilities just because of what careers are highly valued in our world today.

Everyone’s work is meaningful and should be valued, as every career path takes grit and passion. I’ve learned that it is not the end of the world to not have everything figured out at a young age. We have the rest of our lives to solidify a purpose for ourselves, and it might even shift and alter throughout time, which is the beauty of it.

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