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I don't know what to pursue in, and I can't find motivation to find it either.

I don't feel motivated by anything to try and find out what I want to do. I thought I might've have wanted to go into the computer science field, but now I realized that it's not the direction I think I should go. So I don't know what I want to do now.
#career #computer-science #career-choice #career-path

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Doc’s Answer

Sharar if there’s something in your life that you don’t like, either try to fix it or move away from it. While its fine to vent occasionally, endless rumination on the negative is a surefire way to kill your motivation.

BABY STEPS – When you let yourself think you'll never be able to win again, you're setting yourself up for the very failure you fear. It's easy to feel overwhelmed when you're trying to reverse your mindset, so try focusing on doing small things well. You don't have to take on the world – just complete one small task with focus and excellence. That small win can help restore your confidence. And if you repeat it, again and again, one step at a time, suddenly you will have managed what may have felt unmanageable.

STAY FOCUSED – When you get caught up in a cycle of obligations but shut off from your own positive forces, you can lose touch with what drives you, and you may find yourself trudging through the day. If that happens, it's time to stop and focus on your mission. Why are you doing what you do? What's the motivation, the drive, the passion, behind everything you're doing? If you can find your mission, you'll get back your motivation, and if you get back your motivation you will find your confidence.

CHANGE-IT-UP – Sometimes you may feel like you're stuck in cement. Nothing you try seems to work. But have you been trying new things, or just variations on the same things that you already know don't work? To shift your perspective and regain your motivation, try doing old things in new ways. And that means changing the way you look at things. Changing your view and your perspective can help you find new solutions and new confidence.

AVOID NEGATIVITY – When things are going wrong and you find yourself feeling challenged, a negative attitude is an understandable development. From there, it's a short jump to engaging in destructive behavior and spending time with people who fuel your negativity and cynicism, and things can quickly spiral out of control. If you are serious about getting back on track you have to stay away from negative thinking, negative people and negative circumstances. Surround yourself with positivity and encouragement.

Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy Sharar. Especially when you're down, you may judge yourself harshly and speak internally to yourself in terrible ways that you'd never use with anyone else. Only you know what’s best for you. Trust your inner voice. Paying attention to your authentic needs and listening to your inner wisdom is one of the best ways to get your motivation back.
Thank you comment icon Thank You Dexter for your Continued Support. Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that we plant. Doc Frick
Thank you comment icon Thank You Aslon. No one is more cherished in this world than someone who lightens the burden of another. Doc Frick
Thank you comment icon Thank You Sophia. Nothing is impossible, the word itself says “I’m possible”! – Audrey Hepburn Doc Frick
Thank you comment icon Thank You Ashwin. “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, What are you doing for others?” — Martin Luther King, Jr. Doc Frick
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Sophia’s Answer

Hi Sharar,

The feeling you have right now is a very common one! There are even many adults who still find themselves changing career paths later in life. Don’t feel stressed about making a final decision now. Keep in mind you have plenty of time to explore other topics and industries. I would recommend you start by making a list of your hobbies and interest and see how they could translate to possible career opportunities! Good luck!
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Cathy’s Answer

Hello Sharar,

It sounds like you are in limbo. You mentioned that you are a student. Is that high school? Is that college? I knew since junior high that i wanted to be an accountant, but when high school graduation came i knew that i did not want to go directly into college. I wanted a change in what i was doing. I ended up joining the Army for four years. I'm not saying joining the military is for everyone, i'm just saying that you can try other things while trying to figure out what you want to do. You need to decide what works best for you!!
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Roddrick’s Answer

Find a major is very difficult. Just relax and don't stress yourself out. If you are in high school take that first year and just be exploratory. Try different classes and talk the professors in those classes. Ask questions. With some jobs you are able to shadow someone.
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CJ’s Answer

Hi Sharar,

I'm a rising junior at the University of Colorado Boulder studying Finance and Information Management. During high school I felt the same way. I would ask questions like "How am I suppose to pick something that I'm going to be interested in the rest of my life?" or "How easy is it to switch to a degree that I would enjoy?". Don't stress out, this is a big decision and probably one of the biggest ones so far in your life. But the best part is colleges give you time to explore topics that you might possibly want to study. Take your first year to learn more about potential careers and enjoy the college experience. Even better is that you don't necessary need a degree in a certain field to potentially get a job in that field. I'm an intern at U.S. Bank and our campus team has told us that they hire a wide variety of degrees so that they can add new ways of thinking to the bank. Hopefully I have been helpful and wish you the best of luck in your future!
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Mula’s Answer

Hello Sharar,

I have been in your shoes and only now have developed a newfound passion in life. Going to classes were one of the things I dreaded on a day to day basis and I would never try anything to my greatest potential. I would have many nights wondering what I'm doing with my life and most days I would be sleeping. One key aspect in reestablishing my passion and motivation was through being bored. Try to limit yourself and leave yourself to be bored. When I was bored I started to have an itch for doing something. Most of the time I would end up writing poems, wanting to sing, and to just simply write. Since then, I have had a change in major. I changed my major from Computer Science to English and have solidified my idea on what I want to do in life.

So I urge you to find your go-to when you are bored and start from there. When you are feeling bored evaluate what you would do in that instance and work to integrate that into finding your passion. I also urge you to go out and meet people. Another factor for me to find motivation was to meet like-minded individuals. When you surround yourself with people that are full of passion, they also inspire you to do the same.

I hope this helps and good luck!
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Alina’s Answer

Don't worry about it! It is harder to go into college with a decided major and be unsure throughout your courses than it is to go in undecided. People can be pressured to know what they want to do and have a "path" because others do, but I promise others are also figuring it out just like you. In high school and college, try out different courses and explore various interests, figure out what YOU like and take your time doing so!
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Madhu’s Answer

First thing I'd like to say, DON'T WORRY. It's stressful, you'll see some of your friends who have their whole lives mapped out and you'll feel pressured but DON'T. I would say, try out different classes in high school/college. This is the best time to discover what you really want to do and what peaks your interest. Reach out to your professors, they're also a good resource and could help put you in the right direction. Try shadowing people in different professions to see how their day to day life is. But most importantly do not stress, if you stress and cave in, you might not find what interests you at all since you rushed. There are so many different career paths out there that are worth exploring, you'd be surprised at what you find interests you!
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Ted’s Answer

It's OK not to know what you want to be when you grow up. Lost of us didn't, and lots of us thought we'd be one thing and ended up following a different path.
At this point, you should focus on the things you know you like doing, the people you want to help, the ways you like to spend your time.

Do you like working on computers? Working with your hands? Being indoors or out? Working with other people or on your own? Working with words vs. numbers? Art vs. science?

Try joining clubs or volunteering in random organizations to "try on" different ways of working and see how you feel in each situation. The more new kinds of environments you put yourself, the more real the choices will seem to you, and the more you'll be able to see the career pathways available to you.

I went to college thinking I wanted to be a journalist because I'm a good writer. I took my first journalism class and realized that reporting news was not what I wanted to do with those skills. I changed to Human Communication so I could write songs and stageplays with more realism and insight. Eventually I soured on playwriting but that Communication training helped me through a career in television production and later as a high school English language arts teacher. When teaching high school didn't make sense anymore, I took my teaching/writing/video production skills and started working in online education creating eLearning courses.

They say that most of the careers you will have available to you don't even exist yet, but if you work towards building your skills in the areas you like to work in, you can be prepared for those jobs of the future.
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Avegail’s Answer

Back when I was a junior in college, I attended a career panel and the advice I remember the most is "Your major does not dictate your career." I majored in Information Technology. I thought I was going to be a systems admin, network admin, or database admin. I didn't know anything else outside of that. I thought it would be useful if I minored in Computer Science but I dropped out the first day of CS101 because it went way over my head.

The summer before my senior year, I had an internship with client services department at my first internship. I didn't have much work to do and I started having a crisis on whether Information Technology was for me. This internship led me to meeting the User Experience Analyst of the company and she's how I started my career in User Experience Design. Back then, UX wasn't as popular as it is today. There weren't any courses I could take in UX design. The closest one was web design but everything I learned about UX was through on the field experience.

I've had a friend who went to college to be a doctor. He took a summer bootcamp in web development and now he's a developer at Facebook.

I think you find what's a fit for you through your experiences of trying out whatever you're interested at that moment. Throughout my UX career, I've had moments where I wondered if UX was for me. Then I realized that part of that feeling was imposter syndrome and the other part was that the company itself wasn't for me. I'm really happy at the company where I am today.
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Theodore’s Answer

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life,”

I don't know your exact position or where you are in school but the best advice I can give is to take a step back and think about what you enjoy doing and see how you can apply that to what you want to do. It sounds like you were thinking about doing CS in college, If you're already in college, take a step back and see what you can pivot to from CS if you don't feel like that's an option anymore. If you're still applying to universities, then don't worry, you have at least until your Junior year to decide exactly what you want to do. Good luck, I hope this helped!
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Spyros’s Answer

"Knowing what we want to do..." It took some time before I realized this is not a question we should ask ourselves unless we only have a limited of options in front of us. Why is that a bad question to ask in most of the cases? Simply because the scope of the question and the possible answers are pretty vast.

Instead of overthinking what you want to do I would suggest doing quite the opposite. Start asking yourself what you do NOT want to do. Grab a pen and paper and write down things you do not like, things you do not see yourself doing in the future, things you do not want to invest your time in, knowledge that does not interest you etc As you are making this list you will end up with a list of things that do not interest you, things you can already forget about. At the same time you may realize that your brain starts objecting: "Oh I don't like doing this but actually I find it quite fun doing that...". As you progress you will get an idea of the direction you want to head to and once you reach a few options (around 4 or 5) then it might be the right time to ask yourself: "Ok, now which of these things I really want to do?". It may not come at first but at some point it will happen. It just takes time and practise...
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Adil’s Answer

Hi Sharar,

I think you are definitely not alone in this situation. I am not sure if you are in high school or starting your undergrad, but the biggest thing is not to panic. Coming out of high school, I was in the same dilemma on what field I should go into. I think the best thing you could do is get of your comfort zone and try new things. This can be anything from different classes, new experiences, etc. You could also lean on your close friends on what all they like to do and see if there is any type of comparisons to your interests. Overall, I feel like it is totally acceptable to feel the way you are, so I would not stress it one bit.
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sushma’s Answer

Hi Sharar , It happens to most of us. Sometimes after a point we loose interest. So you will have to first relax and think what makes you happy . For that first you will have to trace back and think what was the key factor that made you choose computer science and then realize what was the reason for the disconnect. Probably that's where you should start and then rest will fall in place.
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Morgan’s Answer

Hi Sharar,

You will always have opportunities to change your path and reinvent yourself throughout your career. Focus on where you want to be in terms of your company and team and you could always move around laterally as you grow. If you can make a specific determination about what field you'd like to be in, focus in there.

If you aren't sure what you want to do, study something that could be a broad springboard for a variety of career directions.

Consider if your next step or next choice is a passion, it gives you experience that you may need later, or it pays more than what you are doing now. If you check one or more of those boxes, dive in and start thinking about it.

Additional suggestion is to try to surround yourself with people who are smart and successful and network with people who are in career fields you may be interested in. Networking and learning more about what other people do may give you a better idea of what you'd like to do.
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Keri’s Answer

Hi Sharar,

Whether you are in high school or university, you are probably feeling a lot of pressure to "know" what your career path is and what you want to be. It's normal to feel anxious and pressured to make what seems like a life-long decision, before you have even really seen what is out there to do! With the pandemic bringing changes to how everyone goes to school, work and carries on in every day life there are even more questions about how to move forward with career decisions.

The wonderful thing about career choices, is that they can be changed, tweaked, modified or completely derailed! And that's ok! There are Trade Schools, Internships, Community Colleges...all offering you a glimpse into careers you could really enjoy. You might even find a career that you never considered or thought would be available to you. Consider what things bring you joy, the things that make you smile when you have completed them and try and figure out what about that thing brings you joy. Is it the process of research? Is it the conclusion of the project? Is it the grueling challenge of getting everything to come together? Those indicators can help you determine what you would like to focus your studies on.

Just know that you are not the only one out there that doesn't have the next steps mapped out and take it one day at a time, it will come!
Good luck!
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Shay’s Answer

Don't panic, you can take your time to figure out what you want to do. I would also think about the stuff you like and you could naturally find something you're interested in from there. For example:
-Do you like to play video games? Look into game design or testing
-Do you like to watch YouTube videos? Create your own YouTube content
-Do you like scrolling through social media? Become a social media content creator or marketer
-Do you like watching sports or looking at sports statistics? Look into data analysis and analytics
-Do you like eating food? Review food and restaurants on Yelp or cook your own as a chef
These are just a few examples. If you look at the things you like to do, you can create a more natural and fun career path. It's not always about the money, it's about doing what you love. After all, we spend most of our lives from age 22-65 at work, so why not do something that you love?
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Jessica’s Answer

Hi Sharar,
Don’t be too hard on yourself. Personally, I didn’t figure out what I really wanted to do until my 30s. If I could give you one piece of advice it would be to do something you love and then it won’t feel like work at all.

I would suggest checking into a day in the life of certain fields. Once you see how the day to day goes, you may decide it’s either for you or not something you find interesting. Check locally to see if there are any shadow opportunities available. Please keep in mind depending on the profession/role shadow opportunities may or may not be available due to privacy reasons.

Good luck to you! I’m sure you will find something you love doing, no rush.
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Ebony’s Answer

Definitely open yourself to any opportunities to determine what you want to do. However, I think that you should give Computer Science a deeper look; since the field can branch into multiple segments and niches that most people are unaware of. the perception is that Computer Science leads to a career in coding or even in some type of computer network position. But the degree alone can leap into data analyst work, software configuration, design, teaching- the possibilities are endless. In addition, the degree is also flexible in any sector you want to work into. All the best in your endeavors!
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Peter’s Answer

Don't worry about this too much. I think the best thing to d is to keep trying and learning new things continuously. Always be discovering. The key to life and happiness is being true to yourself and being kind and good to others around you. Everything else will fall into place.
Thank you comment icon Hi Peter, although your answer was insightful, it did not directly answer the student's question. Perhaps you can improve your response by giving the student tips on finding motivation! Gurpreet Lally, Admin
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Hamad’s Answer

Hello Sharar,

I feel like the best thing to do is to just take a dip into one of the fields to see if it excites you. I say this because I have also been there... I also thought that computer science was what I wanted to do, but I had no motivation to pursue it and actually find out. It wasn't until I took a day to just immerse myself in it to see what comes out. After that day, I definitely had some renewed interest and decided to seek more information out of it afterwards. I'd definitely recommend for you to do the same!


Best,
Hamad
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Bryce’s Answer

Hi Sharar,

You are not alone. A lot of students often don't know what they want to study or what career path they want to follow. I myself was someone who switched career paths halfway through college. I would recommend two things. Go to college take general education classes and explore a wide variety of classes to see if any of those subject areas spark interest and help you find what career path you would like to follow. If you don't do that I would recommend taking a year off and taking a moment to truly think about what you want to do for the rest of your life. Think about what motivates you and what you are passionate about. I hope this helps you!
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