Four Short Weeks of Uni

By the end of my first day of Uni, I realised that studying a double-degree of Law and Journalism simply was not for me. It might sound bizarre and really strange that I could have known right off the bat, but trust me; I knew.Although I continued with the course for four weeks in total in order to give it a trial, my mind had been set. And if you’re wondering why I chose that degree in the first place and how I suddenly came to the conclusion of dropping the degree, I’m letting you know right now that there were two things that pushed me into it: peer pressure and self-pride.

I’ve always loved interacting and communicating with others, but even more than that-I’ve  always had an urge to help people. Unfortunately for me, I was never told that these qualities in themselves are gifts. Society has caused us to believe that intelligence, income and socio-economic standing should determine the career path we choose. People want to be rich. People want to be able to proudly announce the great career they have. People don’t want to admit to studying an “easy” course or one that has lesser value. I suppose that is why I overlooked my previous longing to become a teacher, and went with the stupid Law degree that I was told, I had been lucky to have been offered.

Both Law and Journalism require independence and self-motivation and both careers are both time consuming and highly competitive. Sitting through three lectures on my first day of Uni I realised that I wouldn’t enjoy having that as a profession for the rest of my life. I wouldn’t be able to fully settle down and have a good work-life balance. I wouldn’t be able to engage with others on an intimate and personal level. Put simply I wouldn’t be able engage with others and at the same time enjoy what I was doing. Only now that I have dropped my course, am I able to see that.

The purpose of this post is to let you know that you should choose something you genuinely love- not just something you’re good at or something you want to be able to prove to others. Talents aren’t necessarily academic or skill-related, they can be the simple traits and personality God has given you. Imagine if this world was filled with people that all had the same mindset, personality and abilities. There wouldn’t be diversity and life would be plain boring. Nothing would be achieved because there wouldn’t be people of different backgrounds who could bring various skills and abilities to the table.

I’ve realised that having a fancy degree or choosing an elite course does not make you accomplished and should not make you feel worthy about who you are. If God has a plan for your life, he will make it known to you and he will make it happen- regardless of how impossible it seems or how much you believe you will hate it. So here I am, waiting three months until I can restart a new course, waiting on God to show me what exactly he wants me to do with the rest of my life.