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April 30, 2008
Discovering your “Life Major”
Ever since I started this thread about a “Life Major” in late November, 2007, I have enjoyed reading the conversations that this topic has generated.
I remain amazed how at a young age, just about everyone who attends university in the United States has to pick a major and make it their core focus for the time they spend at university. How does anyone at 18 or 20 know what it is that they really want to do for the rest of their lives? In fact, there are quite a number of people I know who are 35-40 years old who don’t know what they want to be doing for the rest of their lives. And I wonder how many of us who went to university and got a degree for one speciality actually decided to stay in the business sector of our chosen profession 10 or 15 years after university? As far as I can tell, not many.
Yes going to university offers us the chance to mature, take on responsibility, to be social and if we are lucky to learn a thing a two. And in my book there is a big difference between “learning” and “studying.” From my own personal experience, things that I learned in school, I still know today. And things that I just studied I never really knew. I just didn’t realize it at the time when I was going to school.
While I was in high school, I started a DJ entertainment company and I started my first computer consulting company. And both generated a source of revenue while in High School and while I was going to college. And while I graduated with an accounting degree, in less than two years after college, I discovered my first life major and it wasn’t in accounting. I made the decision to start a software company and ended up spending the next seven years focusing on the world of spreadsheets (Lotus 1-2-3), real-time market data and fixed-income securities. While I never studied Calculus in college (or high school) I ended up teaching myself the math I needed in order to feel comfortable developing @ functions that did a lot of complex math which was needed when working with fixed-income securities.
And whether you discover your life major in high school, university or some time afterwards, it is up to you to find your passion and turn that passion into your profession. And the act of discovering your life major isn’t an easy one. But only you know what you are passionate about and only you can make the decision to follow your heart and follow your head and empower yourself to turn your passion into your chosen profession.
In the end, it all comes down to you. You can’t outsource your future. You are responsible to yourself. One of the most liberating feelings you can experience is to discover your Life Major and do something about it.
And one day you make wake up and ask yourself…how did I get here? :)
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Tags: college, Life Major, Social Media, Jeff Pulver
Posted by jeff on April 30, 2008 09:41 AM | Permalink
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Posted by: 帯広デリヘル風俗情報 at October 17, 2009 01:22 AM
Something that I know to be true about at least the computer consulting industry in which I work is that it is filled with people that majored in many, many different subjects in college and have had a variety of jobs prior to those focused on technology. Being forced to choose major in college before you have necessarily fully formed an idea of what you want to do as a career may seem like something that is really limiting; but I know at least in the case of computer consulting (and most likely with many other jobs as well), it is dependent on so much more than technical knowledge – including a real business sense, the ability to truly understand people and solve complex problems, the ability to comprehend economics and retain massive amounts of information, writing and communication skills – that you will find those that have degrees in everything from computer science to psychology, English, mathematics, business, etc. I think this shows that no matter what you decide early in life it can always be reshaped and applied to a different career than you originally expected.
Posted by: Computer Consulting Kit Preview Blog at May 11, 2008 12:00 AM
The only constant thing in life is change.
It seems to me some people are still stuck in the belief that what they plan is what's going to happen. Since even the weather is so unpredictable, why would anyone assume they'd know where they would be and how they would feel in a couple of years?
Specifically, you choose a major since you have to choose a major if you wish to have a degree. I still don't see it as important as choosing a vocation.
Most choices we make are in conditions of uncertainty anyway.
Posted by: Amir at May 6, 2008 08:09 PM
In Russia there was no majors too. It was typically 5 years to get a degree of an "engieneer". There was also no percentage calculations. Most don't know if they are in top 10% or top 20 or anything (I guess I am the only person to know because I was an absolute top of my class of 400).
So here goes the story. I was an electrical engineer for telecom. Which means building telephone networks. I got a desktop computer (first IBM clone made in Sovient-camp Bulgaria) with a compiler (illegal copy of Borland Turbo C) and fell in love with writing software. I stayed nights in the office. I dreamt code while asleep. I went crazy. Shortly after that my family emigrated to Israel. And I decided hell with my first education, I am going to start from stretch. I enrolled to Masters in Technion which is tops in technical Iseraeli edutcation. I slaved for another 4 years. But now, 15 years since graduation, I am still writing code late into the night after work and after putting kids to sleep. My day job is manageing R&D for a startup and also being an architect, and I also do some consulting. Love every aspect of that. And you know what, most of the time I thought I wasted 4 years of Technion. It is only recently i started to recognize the perspective it gave me. I consider it a live major, because it was my second education after a decidedly false start.
M
Posted by: Michael at May 4, 2008 04:52 PM
You've certainly pinpointed a key problem: who really knows what they want to do at any given point at time, especially when they are teens. The whole system is geared around the professions that require multiple degrees, IMHO, so that people can start their careers before a certain age, like: doctors, lawyers, professors, etc.
But if you're not planning for that kind of career... it does seems a bit silly to have to lock in at a young age.
Posted by: Mark Dykeman at April 30, 2008 09:39 PM
Jeff,
I absolutely agree with you. It is better in the US though. Back in my home country, we don't have majors and minors; you go in for one course and you finish that course. You can change course midway if you want, but you can't be a Physics major and Psychology minor.
I went to school and studied something that has absolutely nothing to do with my passion. I am beginning to put the pieces together and see what i love doing. Books that have helped are "Now Discover your strengths," "Strengths Finder 2.0" and i'm now reading "Go put your strengths to work."
I run my own small business and have learnt stuff the hard way. The challenge has been fun and the growth all the worth it.
The future does definitely look brighter as i plan how best to use my key strengths mix.
Posted by: Kene at April 30, 2008 01:11 PM
see david byrne:
Once in a Lifetime (Talking Heads song)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Once_in_a_Lifetime_(Talking_Heads_song)
Posted by: steve Garfield at April 30, 2008 11:27 AM