Passion + Problem = The Course You Should Be Studying in University
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Have you ever been to those education fairs? The ones that try to shill promote commission paying the best universities for your college education? These are great places to get a lot of information on what you can study for your future. However, with the large amount of information, I won't be surprised if you get really overwhelmed.
The thing about planning for your future and the course that you would potentially study in is all about the 2Ps. First is passion, the fuel that would sustain you throughout the grueling assignment and exam nights. Second is problem which acts like an accelerant to your passion. There is a problem that you feel for and genuinely want to solve it.
Passion
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You have probably heard this a thousand times. Follow your passion! Let your passion drive you! Yes, I know and I get it but one thing that I found among my students is this. What exactly is passion? Many people define it differently but the general definition I get from my students is this... Passion is what I like to do.
That's an acceptable definition but I find it lacking. There is a possibility that you may stop liking something as time passes. I used to like coding and then I found out how difficult it was and thus, I have stopped liking it for now. The same could happen to any student. Thus, my simple proposal when it comes to finding your passion is this, what is your personal story with regards to a field? I found my passion in teaching because I had to take a small class of students and realized that I could bring so much change. That was what inspired me and that is why I want to be a teacher.
There are some who may not find a course that fits their passion. You may be extremely passionate about gaming and upon searching through the courses offered by a university, find that there is no such thing as PC Gaming 101 or The Theories in Rekking Your Opponents 203. Thus, may I suggest that you pursue a high paying job that could help you pursue your passion. You could pursue your passion in the form of a hobby or a business, that is up to you.
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Some may find this demotivating. Why put yourself through a course that you don't like that may lead to a high paying job? Is all this worth it for your passion? My take on this is that we all need some sort of motivation or goal to work towards. Perhaps a job that pays well which enables you to pursue your passion is a great motivating factor. It certainly would be for me. Furthermore, focusing on your passion keeps you anchored and focused. It keeps you on a path that leads to something and every time you feel like wandering off, your passion should stop you. Thus, before choosing your course at college, find your passion first.
Problem
If passion is what would drive you to complete your studies, problem is what would help you do better or more for your industry. At college or university, you will be trained and taught by specialists. It is likely that you will be challenged academically and intellectually. It is at this point when you realize that your passion was not that fun after all, as all the assignments, tasks and internship starts pouring in, you'll probably start questioning why did you even started this in the first place.
I know this because I have seen this among my students and I have experienced it myself. As I was completing my masters part time, while working a full time job, I wondered won't it be great to just give up and run away on a long vacation. I had the passion to teach, I just didn't have the passion to complete my studies until I saw what awaited me back at my work place.
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My dissertation was on how to better improve learning using technology. I knew that it was an area that my students needed help with. The problem was that no one was going to help my students in that area, the task fell to me . As such, I put my imaginary dream vacation on hold and proceeded to complete my masters.
In addition, finding what problem you want to solve through the course that you choose in college would help open a lot of opportunities. This is because any new innovation can be marketed or make you extremely employable. This can be in the form of a new invention or a new technique that others were not willing to carry out.
It also makes life so much more meaningful. We all crave meaning in our work, meaning that makes what we do significant not only to our industry but our communities. Thus, if you have already chosen a course, what problems do you hope to solve?
Conclusion
Once you are able to get your passion and problem right, you will find college life much more fulfilling. Classes and assignments will feel less dreadful once you have your priorities set. You will see every assignment, every exam and class as a process towards achieving what you were meant to do in life.
Finding my passion and purpose in a particular problem was what got me through many many years of college. It has also gotten some of my friends in med school through the toughest years. I hope you will find this useful especially if you are in the midst of choosing your university's course. What are your thoughts on this? Do you think passion and purpose is sufficient to carry you through the college years?
Though I believe your passion would take you far but I don't think it can sustain you in college. There are other things involved, like determination to succeed.
That's true, just putting it out there though, do you think passion fuels ones's determination to succeed? Would like your thoughts on it
You may be passionate about something and happen to be complacent in nature. You have a passion but at every bump in the way you give up because of complacency. If you are not determined to follow your passion it won't work out for you.
yes I am sure that the most important is not find a good job or anything good but a passionated one!
I think both are very important, and as you point out, your passions can change, so getting through the college years also requires a strong sense of commitment. I think I fantasized about dropping out every semester of college, and although I wasn’t the best student, I now realize it was my determination to not fail that kept me going.
Although I agree that passion is very important, I struggle with the concept. I have a lot of students who really aren’t prepared for college, and probably shouldn’t really be there (for various reasons), but coming from certain economic situations, they really do need college to get out of a bad situation. Sometimes these students do not have much passion at all. They’ve been demoralized by whatever schooling they’ve experienced to that point. Or they are just young and bored with anything not coming off a screen. I can try may hardest to show them passion, to introduce them to ideas they could become passionate about, but sometimes they are just going to plod along, perhaps passing classes and earning credits, but not really learning all that much. So, my question back to you is, how might I help such a student find their passion?
I suppose it really depends on the course that you are teaching. But I will try my best to answer that question. Passion is an essential part in my course, seeing that I am trying to convince my students to go through a life with little pay and a lot of work. I get them to be passionate about it by modelling it and talking about stories that got me there.
As for my students who are still looking for their passion, I think it all boils down to the following three questions:
i) Are you happy with your world? (surroundings/industry)
ii) How would you change it?
iii) How can you achieve it?
I think it always start with a problem. I use to tell my students this story about how I absolutely hated my teachers. I detested the way they taught and I hated school. I wasn't happy with it and so I went on to be a teacher and a trainer to change. You can't change anything by just being mediocre. Furthermore, if you really want to change, get trained and do something. If you don't start doing something, nothing will change, so it always starts with you.
I hope my rambling makes sense. I believe everyone has something they care about and want to change, especially teens as they see the world in a particularly idealistic manner. Do keep the questions coming!
Definitely makes sense! Your timing is great as I am putting some finishing touches on a new/revised course. I too got into teaching because I hated many of my teachers (and luckily had some amazing role models too), and I need to reconnect with my own story of finding my passion. I think I might try starting the semester with a critical thinking exercise that goes along the same idea of your three questions. It’s really not very complicated is it? The reality is just that I have to accept I will always have some students who just aren’t in the right place to begin with, but that is probably less of an issue with the students you teach.
When I left high school, the pressure was on, my parents expected me to study, so I had to hurry up and choose a subject. I hadn't yet found my passion, so I resorted to studying Psychology. While I enjoyed my studies, I didn't want to actually be a Psychologist! I ended up helping my husband run his company, and now I am discovering that my passion is writing! If only I had been able to take a gap year or two to find my passion, it would have made a world of difference to where I am today, I'm sure.
I do wonder if the current education system is preparing us well enough to discover our purpose and passion in life. It seems that many young people, upon graduating high school have no idea what they want to be.Hopefully one day, I would get an opportunity to look more into this.. Now.. To approach my supervisor for funding to create such a research..
When I went to university I was the first in my family to do so. I honestly didn’t really have a clue what I wanted to do so I just jumping into a commerce program because I thought I was interested in business. I was going to be an accountant. Well, that lasted to about a year and a half and when I was on the edge of failing out I decided to completely change schools and programs. I ended up graduating with a degree in marketing and Human Resources then after a few years working I went back to teachers college. Sometimes I think we rush young people into deciding thier whole future. We don’t always have it all figured out at 17 or 18 years old.
That's right, I'm surprised its like that in the states. I always assumed it was an east vs west thing. When I was in New Zealand, I found that students always take a gap year before going to uni to help them figure out what they will study. I love that system as you end up having students who are much more mature in university.
I started college almost at the time of leaving high school. Since I was little I dreamed of being a lawyer, legislating laws, defending the indefensible, when I had to decide that studying my parents was a bit hard with respect to the career I had always dreamed of, for this reason I started studying electrical engineering, something totally opposed to me. passion, I remember that when I got to the 3rd semester I could not feel more that I was being unfair to myself, so I decided to work and pay for the career I had dreamed, today I am a lawyer I love having that profession only at this moment the judicial system of my country It is not the best, I have decided to discover other passions I love the pastry, take care of my little daughter and now I am recently immersed in everything that has to do with education and I am passionate. I have discovered that if you do something with passion you will do well to take advantage of the moments and live them to the fullest, loving everything we do.
Wow, being a lawyer was my dream job too! I love that you followed your passion and went on to enjoy it. Did you ever regret changing your profession tough?even just a little bit?
To answer you with sincerity, I looked inside of me in my memories. Many told me that engineering was very lucrative, but I never regret what I did, because I believe that if you do something without passion you will be a failed professional and you will not give 100% of you.
Very nice inspirational directory. Wish I had seen this before I got to my chosen course of study., though I exclusively have no regrets, if I had known this earlier I wouldn't have taken e a while to adjust.
Yeah, most of us do, what course did you choose at uni?
Banking and finance