It also matters whether you can wake up each morning and be able to put food on your plate.

Some of us have to be mine workers, and linemen, and receptionists, …, because that’s what we can get and we want to feed our families.

@ #18 I have to disagree. I want passion and fulfilment in my whole life, not just after 5.

Unlike Trent, I never had a period of employment success. I pursued psychology because I was told (by parents and school counselors) that my true love, drawing and painting, would never support me financially, and psychology was an interest of mine. Unfortunately, it was after I had the education that I was told I had no “talent” for counseling.

I have no savings other than a retirement plan that might support me for a year or two (thankfully I do have health insurance, but the plan gets worse every year), a loan to pay off, and credit card debt. I’m 48 years old. If it weren’t for friends, at this point I’d be homeless.

I have been greatly inspired by this blog, and intend to start painting again. But I have no illusions that I’ll be able to start selling paintings at craft shows and eventually quit my job at the machine shop.

So, I’ve gone back to school to pursue my passion – I’m getting an interior design masters. Now my creative career may be a bit different because I plan to do healthcare design and as a physician who has practiced, I have an advantage, and interior design, especially healthcare design, is the type of creative field where there are jobs available. But, considering the toll that medicine has placed on me and my mental health/personal life, if I had to do it all over, I WOULDN’T DO IT!! I’d go with my heart.

Living each day being something that you’re not is not a workable option. You can read about “falsification of type” and “prolonged adaptation stress syndrome” at http://www.arlenetaylor.org (and, no this is not me, we just have the same first name). There’s research being done on the effects of living against your natural personality type, and the results are not pretty.

I make less now than I have in 9 years but I’m so much happier because each day I’m moving closer to what I love and my time is more and more filled with something I actually am interested in and like to do. Living each day struggling to get through it is no way to live and will lead to burnout sooner or later. I will be able to pay my bills and have a reasonable life, and maybe I’ll make more than I could in the specialty I chose, but if not, I’ll be happier.

It’s not just about realizing what makes you happy, you have to be prepared to deal with the backlash of actually saying, “No, sorry, I’m not going to give up on my life like you have.” Which is pretty much how it is, no sugar coating it.

Doesn’t help when it’s only going to get worse from here on out, when we start bringing the Porsches and my first Ferrari home.

First of all, the biggest debt we all have is with ourselves, we MUST seek for happiness.

Second, the career is not the most important, is the way you make it happen. You can be a very low pay engineer (I know, I’m one) or a very rich musician.

DON’T kill other peoples dreams, you are killing them and you will NEVER be forgiven (if they say other thing, is a lie).
Forbidding your son or daughter to follow their dreams is murder. I’ll never forgive my parents for all the dreams and spirit they have killed in me since I have memory. And at the day, I barely talk to them, and they know if I get mad at them, they will not know from me for months or even years.

So you are in a hurry and have to decide FAST? You are WRONG, wait another year for starting university, meanwhile, learn many things.

Your son/daughter is heading something you don’t consider good?
Guide them, make plans, look for options. Learn about the subject, make an informed decition. Also finance together so you can plan together the future. DON’T pre-judge!!!

Search for opportunities to NOT get in debt and others pay for your studies.
Everything I see about US and University is a loan. Don’t be fool, is not the only way to pay your studies.

For example, I got a scholarship to France last year. And I passed the 2 previous years with another scholarship from another institution at Argentina.
I worked since I was 18.
Others had money. Others looked for options in other places. Others worked for years in order to save money for studying later.

Search for cheaper options. USA is not the only country in the world, and I can assure you, there are very good Universities in other places. Also, what you learn depends SOLELY on YOU.
Search for 3rd world options, specially in South America. Argentina and Brazil have many well known Universities.

In the end _Follow your dreams_. And DON’T be fool, you have to learn how to sell your image, personal marketing, manage and dominate several tools. Or at leas associate with people that you can trust dominates the thing you don’t.
You have to learn to search for options to be able to FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS!!!

Leo

P.S. When I say follow your dreams, you must define first what are those dreams. Is difficult to follow something you don’t know even now what or where it is.

I think it helps to surround yourself with like-minded people who will support and encourage you. Sometimes the hardest part is figuring out what your passion/talents are! Once you do, learn how you can bring it out to the marketplace to exchange value (talent for money).

Performance majors often get through faster, but, as I point out to them, “This ain’t Julliard!” A performance major from Podunk University is close to worthless. It would be far better if the person is a really good musician to head for LA and become a studio musician.

There are other careers in music, and your son should be encouraged to explore all his options. Music therapy is something that may or may not become viable under Obamacare.

I second seeking a career as a military musician. I know a young man who just embarked on his journey last year as a Marine percussionist right out of high school.

My brother was a very talented trombone player in high school. He ended up auditioning for the US Navy Band and was accepted into the program without a degree when he was 18 years old (although a good portion of the musicians he works with do have degrees).

He’s been on active duty for over 8 years now, lives in San Diego, did a tour in Hawaii, and plans to retire at his 20 year mark, when he’s 38 years old!!

He just bought his first home in San Diego this past year, last month he bought an almost new BMW of his dreams, he has no debt outside those two things, and is very happy…and makes more than I do, especially when you calculate in his benefits!

He’s attending college on his off time and plans to have his degree by the time he retires (at 38 I will add again) – which the military is paying for – where he will be plenty young enough to start a new/second career of his choice.

He has traveled with the band to play in concerts and engagements around the world.

And we don’t have to worry about him going to war…he plays a trombone and sings. :)

One of my sons wanted to be a music major, it was his passion from early childhood. And he did, for the first year of college. He didn’t put in the hours of practice and they washed him out. Unless he is putting in several hours of practice daily NOW he will not make it at a good music program. He should be taking private lessons on a continuous basis from a professional player of that instrument, also on a quality instrument, not a student model. Summers need to be spent at a music camp. University programs in music are highly variable. Do some research.

I personally know 4 young men who are making a living in music, good money. Our local school system gave them a good basis, but they all attended a local (but world famous) arts focused high school, highly selective. Then they all attended highly rated programs in their instruments at highly rated colleges. They all played less common instruments, no violins. Your local community college will not serve you well in this world.

The son who washed out of music is now in seminary and happier. One son became a professional writer and makes more money than I do as a nurse. His wife is an art museum curator and makes even more money. One son wasted several years trying to make it in comedy. Never got paid a dime for it. Better to try early in life than regretting not trying though. Get it out of the way.

That said, I don’t think math is that practical, unless you make sure to take classes in computer programming and statistics and make an effort to apply it to real-world things. A couple of my musical friends finished their PhD in pure math and then became musicians. It seemed just as reasonable a career path as trying to be a professor. I wouldn’t see mathematics as a ticket to easy money, and pure math can be quite addictive which can have negative consequences for your career.

But I don’t think any major is a ticket to financial security. An entrepreneurial spirit and self-knowledge helps more. Following your dreams can teach you more about yourself than following the path with less resistance.