It is the big question. Probably one of the most loaded questions you are asked in high school, “What do you want to do with your future?” Maybe you want to travel the world meeting all sorts of exotic friends, maybe you think of this question as a rhetorical one you will answer in five years, maybe you think of graduation and your future family, or maybe you have not even thought about it, even now, in college. 

For me personally, I could tell you what I plan on doing with my future, as far as my career, but not my personal life. I honestly have not given it much thought. I think like most other people our age, we know what we want but are not sure how much we are willing to risk, or to what lengths we are willing to go to, to achieve it. I think that if you want something done, you should set that as your number one goal and go after it; whether your goal is to get your dream job, or win at beer pong, just go for it. 

If you have not given the idea about your future much thought, don’t worry, you are not alone. Some of the greatest people in our history did not plan on marching through the record books. Most elders I know still don’t know how to answer that question. Figuring it out may or may not happen for you right away, but it will sooner or later. The choices you make everyday decide this for you, but your future also relies half on chance, as does everyone else’s. Enjoy the time it takes to decide. 

As a lowly 20-year-old college student gives you advice while she isn’t living life to the fullest herself, I have been given advice over the years, that has helped shape the person I am today. Maybe sharing this advice with you will help you live your life to the fullest, and maybe even get you one step closer to figuring out what you want your future to look like. So, whatever you do, have fun doing it. Be humble. Enjoy your family, even if they are a little crazy, don’t worry, everybody’s family is crazy in some way. Embrace it all. Embrace your craziness and your weird friends that make you laugh. Tell the people closest to you how much they mean or how important they are to you, because you never know when they will be gone for good. Understand. Understand that friends come and go but the most important ones stay with you for the long run. Understand that not everything will go your way and the answers will sometimes be hard to see. Work hard. Work hard to be where you truly want to be, not just to stay where you are and settle. Love. Love your family and friends, because sometimes they will be the only ones who understand you. Smile. Smile because you never know what hottie could be staring at you from across the room. Don’t worry. Stop worrying about the past because you can’t change it; worrying just adds to the stress of an already stressful everyday life. Be grateful. Be grateful for what you have, and who you have. There is always someone who has it worse than you. Don’t whine about it. Don’t complain about it. Don’t give up. 

I don’t necessarily think this question about what we want to do in our futures should be asked all the time because most likely, the person asking it doesn’t know the answer themselves. It’s OK to answer this question with a shoulder shrug and an “I don’t know.” There are too many questions asked today that contemplate our already complicated young lives, and not enough advice given. Why confuse yourself? As you have this question burdening you, why not store it for a while? Don’t throw it away but just keep it in mind, even if it is on a back burner. The older you become and the more time that passes, the more you will realize how much you would like to accomplish something someday. Why not? Go out and do it. I challenge you. 

Brianna Arity is majoring in early childhood education. She can be reached at brianna. [email protected].