@esietukeme

From June to August 2008, when I was an undergrad at Assumption College (now Assumption University, whoo!) I participated in a guided internship programme at the Capital Area Food Bank for credit in my Management course.

A significant component of that internship, aside from the actual work at the Food Bank addressing food insecurity in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area, was my work with my amazing academic advisor, Dr. Bart Morrison.

One thing that Dr. Morrison had me do as part of my coursework was read What Color is Your Parachute by Richard Nelson Bolles and work through the exercises.

I have to admit that I really struggled with it. I was one of those undergraduates that mostly did well in my courses (except French, and briefly Calculus [until the fantastic Professor Joyce Brown made extra time to make sure I understood the concepts]) but I was also quite directionless. I knew I wanted to succeed and I had a few ideas about what I liked, but I struggled with deciding what exactly I wanted to consistently focus my time and energy on.

So, reading WCiYP was tough. I remember it as a book that had you look at, and around, yourself to figure out what direction to go in. I would procrastinate on the exercises and sometimes only put in minimal effort. In hindsight, I was uncomfortable with being asked to make a decision and I was worried about making the wrong choice. Being a perfectionist and a procrastinator is definitely a bad combination.

However, Dr. Morrison persisted and made sure that I worked through the book. With his guidance I finally made it to the end and had something of a plan. That plan then helped me as I figured out my path during my senior year as I was job hunting and beyond. It helped me sort through all the options being shared with me by Career Services.

In the nearly decade and a half that have passed, it’s not that things have gone exactly according to that plan, but I’ve since learned that it’s better to make a decision (even a wrong one!) than to leave things completely to chance. Making a decision gives you agency and provides a vantage point to reassess your path. Reading that book also set me off on a path searching for a meaningful career that allows me to make a positive impact on the world. It’s a journey I’m still on today.

It’s better to make a decision than to leave things completely to chance.
Making a decision gives you agency and provides a vantage point to reassess your path.

I’ll share the WCiYP plan if I can go far back enough into my archives (it was 2008 after all). It will be good to go through it and see if it still rings true.

Thanks for reading!

tl;dr

1. Read “What Color is Your Parachute” by Richard Nelson Bolles if you’re looking to make a career change or start your career
2. Always try to make a decision. Even making a bad choice is better than indecisiveness.
3. Look out for people who are genuinely rooting for your success. They come in many shapes and forms.