The Trouble With Deciding Your Future

Many of us go to college because we know that with a proper education, we can have access to numerous career possibilities. Indeed, going to school can unlock many doors and opportunities that our parents may never have had access to. I want to shed some light on this journey and the decisions, opportunities, and challenges that we face.  

For the sake of brevity, I will focus on a few areas I think are important. Some students, myself included, find ourselves at a crossroads when it comes to choosing a major. We all need encouragement from time to time, and who doesn’t need money?

​After talking to professor and orchestral conductor Alberto Bade at North Campus one afternoon, I left with some valuable advice. I told him my situation, which included juggling two majors, English/literature and music. It was like a tug of war between the two. I would lean toward English because I liked to write, and then I would lean toward music because I love to play music. Some students may say, why not just double major? Well, Miami Dade College does not offer double majors, and if I decide to double major at Florida State University, the institution I want to transfer to, the workload and price for both majors will increase.

But nevertheless, he told me that “you cannot be in a state of limbo,” that being in a state of indecisiveness is a waste of time. Then he told me a little bit about his journey when he was younger. His friends thought he was a great businessman. He had a business up and running and if continued with it, his friends thought he would become a millionaire. But then the words “…I did not love it, my heart was not there” surprised me. He spoke about how he loved music as well, and at one point he sold his business and started devoting his life and studies solely to music. When he made that decision, he told me that “he was at peace.” He finally figured out what he wanted to do for the rest of his life – play and teach music.

That encouraged me to pursue my heart rather than my mind, which in turn gave me peace of mind and encouraged me. I decided to major in English\literature and minor in music. We all have so much potential to impact other people with our dreams and aspirations when they finally become a reality. If money is an issue, don’t worry, we live in a country that offers financial aid, scholarships, and many more opportunities We just have to grab them. Don’t fret.