If someone were to ask you, “What do you want to do when you get out of college,” would you be able to answer? I know I don’t. For years I thought I knew exactly what I wanted to do, but now I am second-guessing myself and I have absolutely no idea what it is that I want to do.

It seems that everyone in my family has always had their own sort of plan. My grandfather owned one Dunkin Donut franchise that he passed down to my dad and uncle. My dad expanded on that one store and ending up owning seven Dunkin Donut stores. Lucky enough he was able to retire at a very young age, although he got bored and another opportunity opened up for him. He now is a Regional Vice President for a company called Primerica Financial Services.

My sister knew exactly what she wanted to do ever since I can remember. She wanted to work in the medical field. She is now fulfilling her passion as she received her bachelor’s degree from Stony Brook University, and has moved on to receiving her nursing degree from Pace University. After she receives that, her plan is to get the certifications she needs to become a certified nurse practitioner.

You see, I feel like everyone in my family has or had a plan to be successful. I had a plan, but unfortunately it took a turn for the worse and now I don’t know what I want to do. I have had so many conversations with so many people, and they all seem to say the same thing. “Realize what you are good at, and find what you are passionate about.” Guess what, that doesn’t help me. I am good at a lot of things, and I am passionate about a lot of different careers as well, but that doesn’t help me narrow down my choices.

Some members of my family tell me that my calling is to work with children. For whatever reason, I am one of the only people in my family who likes working with children and I am actually good at it. I have been working with children for years now, before I even got my working papers, and was legally able to work and get paid for what I did. I am really good at getting kids to listen to me and to follow my directions, and they always seem to be smiling so I must be doing something right.

So I thought that I might be a great teacher. Thinking about it has made me realize that I don’t want to work with kids every single day. I mean once in a while is fun, but having to do it everyday might be a little too much for me. Another thing that turned me away was the fact that it is really hard to get a job as a teacher these days. I don’t want to have to struggle to find a job, I am good at other things and maybe I would be a good fit in another career. But what would that be?

My last two years of high school I was apart of a fantastic group called the Academy of Finance. People who join the academy have an interest in business and they may want to pursue a career in the field. Going to college I thought I had it, I thought marketing was for me. I thought of so many different jobs that required marketing analysts and then realized, every company really needs a great marketing team to be successful. Here is the catch. A couple of professors in my program turned me away from marketing because they do not make as much money as I thought they would. Any one who knows me, knows that I work really hard in anything that I do. If I am working hard, I want to make a lot of money as well.

This summer I made the decision that I was going to major in Finance and Economics. I have the skills and personality for it, so why not I thought. Here is my struggle, what can I do with a finance and economics degree. I know there are plenty of jobs out there that I can work in, but I need a plan. I am the type of person who needs that plan. I want to know exactly where I will end up when I get out of college. It is driving me crazy not knowing this. Again, everyone keeps telling me that I will figure it out, and that because I am freaking out about wanting to be successful as a sophomore in college, that I will be successful.

Again, I would really like to figure out where I am going. I know all of my great traits. I have a great personality. I am driven and determined. I am organized and know how to complete tasks very well. I like things to be black and white so there is a specific way to do something. I know what I am good and bad at, I want to be successful, and I thought I was doing all of the right things. So why don’t I know exactly what I want to do? If someone could place help me find my answer, I would so greatly appreciate it.