Why You Still Have Time To Change Career

We often feel as if we might have run out of time to change career. That’s because we usually have a wrong understanding of time.

FURTHER READING

“Nowadays, there is a lot of prestige around sticking to your guns. If we change our views, we risk looking weak, indecisive and lacking in character. We’re collectively slightly in love with the idea of a person who stands firm and digs in their intellectual heels. But really it is very unlikely – given how complex the world is and how imperfect our fragile minds are – that all of our current convictions could really be right. We couldn’t say in advance which ones might turn out to be flawed. But we’d have to admit as a principle ahead of time that a portion of them logically simply have to be a bit awry…”

MORE SCHOOL OF LIFE

Watch more films on SELF in our playlist:

SOCIAL MEDIA

Feel free to follow us at the links below:

CREDITS

Produced in collaboration with:

Diyala Muir

[benbelt]

if people weren't pressured to immediately pick a career the minute they leave highschool, and if highschool actually focused on teaching life skills and determining what each individual is interested in instead of this stupid standardized bullshit, you wouldn't have to worry about this.

[SpaghettiShaq]

Time is not the issue.

The problem is lack of money.

[bribarlim]

May this post find the right person; I went back to college at age 25 and now I'm 31 and graduating in 3 months. I can't tell you how many times I stumbled along the way dealing with rejection letters, failed exams, work, lack of sleep, money, and social life. In the face of adversity and ever looming self-doubt - when you feel like you can't go on any further - is the moment you get back up and keep on going! because life is difficult and beautiful at the same time. Now go out there and make it happen.

[jordanleach]

I'm turning 21 in May. Almost all my friends are doing their last year of University and have part time jobs. I dropped out of university last year and have had only a few months of work experience as a bartender. I simply haven't decided what I want to do with my life. After watching this I feel like I haven't wasted my life yet, and that there's still time if I keep trying new experiences until I find something I actually enjoy

[avidreader]

For everyone who are scared to switch their majors or careers, I hope you find the courage to do it. I have done it myself, and I am now happier than I thought I would be. The anxiousness and uncertainty fades away soon enough and you start to live your life how you planned to live it. Trust me, it is easier on the other side of the decision. You just have to find the courage to make the jump.

[arete]

I feel bad for people that base their life upon mental constructs, just follow intuition and true goals, give up when you tire of them and set new ones that are congruent to current self.

[hakusansaku]

Basically "As long as you're not dead, you can change something". Well wisdom of the year award.

[XtrAMassivE]

Changing career at 20 or 22 is seriously no big deal, changing the career when you're 30 and beyond, is a different thing

[pbjohnny]

This video makes me feel better about wasting away all of my early/mid twenties. Yay!

[cmfrtblynmb]

This video claims it is never too late to change career, but then only use age of 20 as the base point. WTF? 20 is of course not too late to change your career. Hell, most americans are usually only at their 2nd year of college when they are 20.

How about if you are 30? Or even 40? Is it too late then?

[lambusaab]

I had a nervous breakdown because of love failure at 19. Got hooked to cigarettes at 21. Suffered an eating disorder at 23. At 25 I was kicked out of college. Rejoined college at 26.
I spent most of my 20s being pathetic. It's not really that bad though.

[colinobriant]

I just switched majors. Thank you for validating my decision.

[Ruonerful]

I'm 27 and trying to switch careers: have worked as a graphic designer for 6+ years and now I'm back to studying during 2 years to, hopefully, transition into writing / journalism. To be honest, trying to make a change sometimes seems really worth the effort and sometimes sucks deep, when it does —like now— I feel confused, lonely, frustrated and scared. Its kind of hard to stop measuring yourself against everyone, seeing how friends progress in their lives while you feel yourself in a sort of uncertain limbo…

[joekotlarsic]

I've figured out that college isn't worth it. Career experience is better for middle class and below. Don't feel forced to go to college it isn't for the majority of people.

[kcfamilam]

Protip: having kids is the #1 way to stagnate your life and "run out of time to do XYZ". Once you have a kid, that's 20 years of taking 0 risks and only taking minute, calculated changes to your life.

[WissamELHachem]

Switching career tracks is not just a struggle/anxiety on the undergraduate level. On the undergraduate level, it easy, we're talking on the scale of 2-3 years which is daunting yet nonetheless not too scary to undertake. I am currently doing a PhD and i am seriously contemplating whether i am doing the right thing. I have so far invested 9 years of my adult life to reach the stage where i am currently, and still have at least 2 more years to finish my phd, so it's by all standards and measures a large investment. Now that's an anxiety that keeps you up at night!!

[samihaislam]

Going through with it. Other people judging you is a significant problem.

[Silverag]

"Hey there, I am looking for a job, I have spent all of my money on education, have spent all my life in education to get this degree to get some work can I have a job?"

"Ehh sorry we need people with some work experience, someone who can just jump on board and start work without any effort sorry"

"Soooo what about the 3-6 years of education I have spent my money, time and effort on?"

[oralboytoy]

You're absolutely right, If people switch tracks too readily or spontaneously (once the excitement of their new ambition fades or they face the first signs of difficulty), it can be a problem.
People must also appreciate the value of commitment, because if they can't commit to anything, then they won't have ANY career!

[kevtb]

This is reassuring. I'm 30 and in the last year or two finally admitted that I wasted my 20's fighting with the random career path I had chosen as an 18 year old. I have been able to find something with some overlap and already made my first steps towards retraining and gaining new skills. Working on getting my foot in the door somewhere were I can learn on the job too because I'm still not sure if it will be satisfying day to day. It's a constant process from what I have learned.The whole education system seems broken. I feel like I was herded through uni without ever talking to anyone about what I was actually doing, why, how etc. They were more than happy to take my money and send me off on my way. It's my fault too, but talking to friends, reading comments here, it's clear that I'm not the only one who feels like they weren't given enough direction at that young age. Add in the fact that the average 16-18 year old has no idea of the world of work, nevermind the specifics of their chosen career path. Of course there will be loads of people coming out of uni and stepping into their first real job suddenly realising that it is not for them. Big difference between studying something and actually doing it yourself. Big difference between the glamourised, undefined idea of a job, and the daily workings of it.
My advice to anyone still deciding what to do with their working life is to spend time researching things. Write lists of things you enjoy and things you don't. Talk to people in careers that might be of interest to you. Phone them up if you have to. Read the job pages and pinpoint the actual day to day skills and qualifications in your field that are in demand and will serve you well. Do what you can to gather those skills whether it's through the course or through extracurricular work.And like the video says, don't be afraid to course correct and change path if something is deeply wrong. 20 is incredibly young. You literally have your whole working life ahead of you. If ever there is a time to take risks, change course and try new things, this is it.The idea that people will work in more than one job for their entire life is relatively new and becoming more and more widespread. Be prepared and expect change. Don't take it as a failure. It is just life these days. Being able to change, adapt and use the skills you have gathered in different ways is a valuable asset.