One of the more prominent blessings and curses about being a
twentysomething in today’s world is how much choice is available on a daily basis. From what to watch on TV, what kind of coffee
to get in the morning, or what kind of cereal to buy in the grocery store, it
can be a comforting yet daunting experience to have all of these options so
readily available at our fingertips. Too
many choices can make us feel like the right option MUST be out there, but at
the same time even more afraid that we can too easily make the wrong
choice. While most daily decisions like
what shampoo to use in the shower might not be so affected by our internal
concerns of how our decision will change us in the long term, it’s easy to
become preoccupied by these thoughts when making larger life choices about our
education, careers and relationships.
However, the more you explore your options and the world around you, the
more it will help shape the person you know you want to be, as well as the
person you know you don’t.
While our parents and older generations sacrificed a lot to
provide us with the opportunity to have the freedom of options, that has not
necessarily made making choices for our future any easier. How do we know which
options are the right ones for ourselves, and which ones don’t serve us in the
best way possible? The answer to that
question will rarely come easy, but to make significant progress towards
answering it for yourself means exploring every option you can, however and
whenever possible. Quarterlifers today
are more fortunate than any previous generation to have more resources, freedom
and capability to explore as many options as possible at this stage of
life. Our parents never had Facebook,
Google, Amazon.com, Match.com, Skype, Wikipedia, or any of the other amazing
tools so readily available to us that expand and connect our world so rapidly. The advantage of being in your twenties with
these tools available is that you can use the energy, freedom, creativity and
enthusiasm that comes with being a Twentysomething to explore more of your
world, no matter how close or how far.
Although it should be encouraged for anyone who can to explore
as many options as possible, it’s also good to do this in a healthy and
grounded way so that you don’t become overwhelmed with the weight of how much
is out there to pursue. It’s now become
cliché to say “With great power comes great responsibility,” but with freedom
of choice there is a responsibility to be aware of how any given option or
choice can impact you personally. For
example, if you are unhappy with your job and want to explore other avenues,
check out what’s out there without making any hasty decisions you may regret
later, like quitting unexpectedly to try your hand at something you have no
experience with. Engage in informational
interviews, read a book on other professions, seek out opportunities on the
Internet to volunteer or network with other people in other industries. Exploring your options in a way that’s
sensible will not only help you know what path you may or may not want to
pursue, but it will also build your confidence for when you are ready to make
that jump. It won’t always work out the
way you hope it to be every time you try and explore something new, but at
least you can use those experiences to learn from and make you stronger for
when you are ready to choose what you know is the right decision for you.
It may seem paradoxical to think that the plethora of
choices and options that many Quarterlifers have these days can feel
paralyzing, but that freedom of choice is often accompanied by a sense of
pressure that we sometimes unnecessarily place on ourselves that leads us to
second guess how beneficial each decision we make is to us individually and to
those around us. Ultimately, no one else
can ever give you an accurate prediction or honest answer as to how any given
choice will make your life better or worse, but what you can do for yourself is
give yourself the permission and the freedom to explore every option that you
have the ability to at any given moment.
There are surprises around every corner, but until you go searching for
them they may always remain hidden and waiting to be found. If you take the time to explore your world
and all of the options and choices around you, with your heart and intuition as
your guide, then you may find that one of those surprises around the corner
might be what you’ve been searching for all along.
