So – you have finally gotten through the process of selecting a college. Before you can even take a breath and enjoy this feeling of accomplishment, you get asked yet another important life question, “What’s your major?”
Choosing a major is a great source of stress and anxiety for many high school and college students. You worry that if you pick the wrong one you won’t get a good job after graduation. Or you are afraid to pigeonhole yourself into a major since you have no idea yet what career you want to pursue.
While these fears are completely valid, they do not have to delay your progress at school. Follow these three steps to ease your anxiety, and choose a major with confidence:
Step #1: Start with what you love – not with what “looks” best on a resume.
Too many students choose a major based on what they think they should do, not based on what they love to do. Avoid this major mistake (pun intended) and major in something you love. For starters, what classes did you like in high school and why? What would your ideal job look like? What are your goals, strengths and values?
Step #2: Get playful.
Think back to when you were six or seven years old. What did you like to do? What did you want to be when you grew up? What did you imagine yourself doing when you were too young to invite logic into the equation? Using the foundation of what was joyful and fun when you were younger is a way to begin to explore how you want to create your future.
Step #3: Invent your future.
While career assessment tests can be extremely helpful in narrowing your focus and providing ideas, they simply cannot include all the occupations out there. In fact, in this new economy, many of the jobs and careers graduates are pursuing didn’t exist just a few years ago. Start by finding careers and occupations that combine what you love, what you want to do and what your strengths and talents are and matching that with a major that will help you to learn more about that area of focus and discover ways to create and invent your future.