What am I doing with my life?

[prettypouf]

Hey guys--
I'm posting to ask for advice, more or less. I'm 19 and not yet in college-- the reason I haven't gone (I graduated in June of '09) is that I am too confused with what I want to do. My family had me relocate to south dakota (I'm originally from pittsburgh) and I had been accepted into the art institute of Pittsburgh for Fashion Merchandising. I wasn't able to go, and I have told myself that merchandising may not be what I want to do, but I'm still very unsure.

I'm not sure what I want to do or what I want to get into, and I'm not sure where to even start. As for what I like about fashion, I enjoy the shows and the presentation-- I would love to sit down and review shows, talk about them or write about them-- I'm not sure if I have the creative mind for design, but then again I just don't have the experience.

Could someone give me a push in the right direction, or send any ideas my way? I'd love to get off the ground with this, I feel like I need to find my personal goal and "personal legend" in life before I feel complete...

 

[turnofflights]

pretty... you're not the only one! I'm 20 and I like many other people our age still don't know what my "true calling" is. I think that's life though, the process of figuring out what we truly want especially at this age. I didn't start university until this year and it was the best choice i made. For 2 years I had time to travel and discover myself more, then when i return to school i was ready and serious! best advice i think i can offer you is do what you truly feel is right, don't let anyone force you, rush you, worry you. do what's best for you, if you have the slightest doubt merchandising isn't for you follow your instincts.

 

[MUXU]

^i wish i had your freedom. i was pretty lost at 17 when i had to make a decision as to where im going for uni. i even remember crying at my best friend's house with the amount of pressure from my parents. especially when my decision was to move from toronto to london, a place i never been before. at the time i wanted to travel too but that was totally out of question. so i had to go somewhere for school.

im 20 now, going on 21 this year and man, what an emotional ride i was on. since year 1 i felt constantly pressured into making a quick decision and it's not even decisions i can just f--k off because it's dealing with ten, twenty thousand pounds. and now i spent two years on a course i dont even like and is generally worn down. the one thing i gained out of experimenting with a new city and trying courses i have no idea if i will like is...i realize what i really like and don't like. im the type who is curious about a lot of things and want to try them with no regrets later so for me, i would just decide on doing something and do it to see whether i like it or not. it does eat up your money and time though...but more experiences to gain.

it sounds like you like journalism, writing about fashion. so why not try looking into this field. you can always look for an internship to do before you set your head on a course. at least internships are free and still let you explore where as university you need to pay.

 

[coryb]

I think this is pretty common, even at my age (23). I took a bit of time off after high school, went to film school for an accelerated 12 month program, worked in film/music videos/commercials doing digital stuff for the past few years...now I'm planning to take out a loan to go back to school! When I was in film school at 19, there were people in my class all the way up to 40 years old. I think it's normal, especially in the arts/creative fields, that people make transitions at different times or feel they should be doing a creative thing but don't finally make the jump until later.

I wouldn't stress about it but I think the worst thing you can do is not do anything; sitting around wondering what you should do because it's hard to tell without actually trying something isn't very helpful, you can't just wait for a decision to come to you. Take some part time courses somewhere, try out a few different things and it'll give you a much better idea of what feels right for you.

 

[VogueParisLover]

First of all, I'd get the hell out of South Dakota. If you are really serious about being in the fashion industry, moving to New York or another big city would be better for it.

Second, I'd definitely look into becoming a fashion journalist if I was you. Fashion journalists do exactly what you said you'd be interested in doing. You usually wont find a specific fashion journalism program at a uni. Some schools, like Central Saint Martins in London, have them, but you can find many writing programs at almost all schools, so look around and I'm sure you'll find a fit.

You are quite young still, so I wouldn't get stressed. Take your time and make the best decisions you can, because you don't want to waste your time and money on something you don't love.

Hope this helps!

 

[tigerrouge]

I would advise anyone wishing to earn a living wage from writing to concentrate on being as adaptable as possible, and get themselves trained to be able to write about anything. That way, if fashion doesn't work out, you can still survive by working in some other sector, in some other capacity.

Having said that, you don't actually need any special education to become a writer - as every successful writer will tell you, the key to success is to actually write something. Many people dream of becoming a writer, but not many dedicate themselves to the simple process of planning, researching and writing a piece. That is where you can start. You can start today. Or - and this is the great thing - you can also start writing ten or twenty years from now. But you must write to become a writer.