This week we had our first official Student Voice meeting, and as an ice breaker question I asked them to tell me what their dream job was when they were little, and if it was different from what it is now. While there were a good number of students who changed their mind from what they thought they wanted when they were young, there was a surprising amount who’s dream job was still the same as it was way back then. I had one student in particular who said he knew he wanted to be a firefighter when he was little, never doubted that’s what he wanted to be, and he’s now in the med fire rescue program, ready to graduate this year.

I’m not going to lie, I was kind of jealous! I’ve been out of school for 4+ years now, and still don’t know what my dream job is. Yes, being an author is technically my dream job, but I’m not making a living off of it anytime soon. Right now, it’s more of a side hustle. Which still has me thinking, what is my purpose in life?? What are my strengths and interests? Besides writing, I don’t feel like I’m exceptionally good at anything – at least not anything I can make money doing. My parents said they knew they wanted to become doctors because they wanted to help people. They both have defining moments in their lives where they just knew that’s what they wanted to do. I’m still waiting for that same moment to hit me as well.

Later in the week we had a painting event, and I was chatting with a couple of students and one of them said, “I wish someone would just tell me what I’m supposed to do with my life.” I’ve said that exact same thing so many times! How do you know what you’re supposed to do with your life? I know I’ve talked about this several times before, and I’m clearly still trying to figure it out. Are most people like my parents, where there’s a specific moment they remember thinking, “yeah, that’s how I knew what I was meant to do with my life.” Or do most people just pick something they think they’ll like and it ends up working out? I really don’t know!

Don’t get me wrong, I do really like my current job. I’m still not sure if it’s my dream job though. I can say that I have fun doing it and I have great co-workers who make it easy to get up and go to work. I also feel like this job has really brought me out of my shell. I feel a lot more confident in myself and my abilities to do work effectively. I feel like I am good at my job. But is it my purpose in life to plan activities?? I’m still waiting for the sign that says yes or no.

For now, I’m totally happy staying where I’m at. Can you believe it’s the longest I’ve been at a job since graduating from college? It’s kind of nice to know what I’m doing and not feel new and lost every day. I may not know for sure if it’s my dream job or not, but I do know that I don’t wake up every morning completely dreading going into work. And there definitely used to be days at past jobs where I would have rather jumped off a bridge than go. So if THAT is my sign that I’m doing okay, I’ll take it. 🙂

I’m just taking life one day at a time. I don’t know what I’m doing half the time, but I’m still alive, healthy and employed, so I’m doing something right. If anyone has a story they’d like to share about how they picked their career, I would love to hear them!

Until next time! 🙂

Megan Reiffenberger