CW Room

I think the hardest part about being in your 20s is being lost. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again – There is no right path to follow. The biggest pitfall is that after years of being told what to do, what your schedule will be and what to do for work, you come to realize that none of these translate to real life and that you actually have to figure out what you want to do with your life.

If you do manage to get that successful job with the fat paycheck and the office in central wherever, you’re still trapped. Props to you if you’re happy by the way, I’ll be honest I am a little jealous of your success.

Not jealous, envious. And while I do commend you on your hard work, I wish it were as easy for everyone else to be as happy as someone like you by working as hard as they do.

Truth is it isn’t what you do it’s why you do it. So if you want to teach after years of, say, political science post-grad, then there’s no shame in that. If you manage to get into teaching and find success in there, then quite frankly you’ve won.

But it’s not as easy for everyone to find success in what they want to do as it is for some people. By success I mean in the tangible – comfortable living – sort of way and not just in the ‘enjoying what you do’ way.

Because of course, success is enjoying what you want to do. But in an economy like ours, in a practical world where coffee costs money and you have to see a dentist at least once a year even if you’re being lazy because you’re confident in your flossing and, oh yeah you have to buy your floss. Not to even mention bills and all sorts of funds you need to progress in life like wedding/getting married funds or clothing funds or anything that costs anything at all.

The true problem in your 20s is that you realise just how difficult it is for you to be happy with what you do, because the economy – the world – isn’t set up that way.

It’s set up in a way where you have to work, maybe double work, possibly even triple work just to make ends meet. And you may think to yourself, well you can get a well paying job and do the things that make you happy on the side.

But even then, you’ll have the employment crisis and the red tape on joining companies and all these hoops you have to jump through just to prove that you can beat your competition at doing a truly basic job like creating graphics that you don’t even want to do, and they probably don’t either.

So here you are, putting all your effort into getting these jobs that you don’t want just to be able to survive while you’re torn between focusing on your passion and having a chance at success or being practical and failing at getting jobs that idea mining hiring managers and interviewers probably aren’t even hiring for.

And yes, obviously I’m frustrated. That might have been clear to you through out this rant. But that’s why I’m writing. Because that is my passion and that is what I’ve decided to take a chance at finding success in.

I wrote a blog a long time ago about Finding Success in your 20s and it was focused on doing what you want to do, what you’re good at, the thing in which your talent lies. Because at some point in history that is all that people did – what they were good at – and I refuse to believe that humanity has capitalised beyond the ability to recognise passion, talent, when they see it.

I’m not saying I’m the perfect, most talented writer, but I am saying that knowing professions like these existed in history is why I am writing. I don’t, I won’t, fall into the abyss of needing monetary success in whatever form it comes to prove to me that I can write.

I want to write, so I will. I need to pay my bills, so I’ll improve. I don’t know what that means for you, in fact let me know what you wish you could do if you weren’t trapped in an economic hamster wheel. What I do know is that I’m thankful that you’ve read this blog and that I wish you all the best in your future.

Thanks for reading.

Also, if you’ve enjoyed reading this blog, please do check out my other In My 20s Era blogs that are in line with this one. I also write book blogs, travel blogs and food blogs!