I recently commented on a post talking about looking forward to graduating and questioning whether further education really was the right thing to do. Since I can really relate to the problem I decided to include what I said into my own blog post, exploring what I said a bit further.

I’m a Civil Engineering student in the UK. I’ve had such difficulties at university. I’m in my final masters year after a lot of struggle (and the slightly depressing thing is I’ll turn 25 soon after graduation).

But life happens in between it all so it’s really not a problem. The funny thing is, after all these years I always thought I wanted to go into structural engineering which is what kept me going. Suddenly I don’t even know anymore. I’m going to take a gap year to South Africa, where I was born, and soak up life for a year without having the pressure to do things I don’t want to. One thing I am recently very passionate about is computer programming so I may even do my own thing once I’ve mastered it.

Life should be about enjoying what you do and often it’s actually a choice whether to enjoy it or not. If you think positively about something and reassure yourself that you are enjoying it, chances are you will! You need a driving passion to do many of the things life has to offer and therefore it is wise to take pleasure in what you are doing before attempting to master it. However, some people spend many years of their lives doing what they don’t like and wondering why they aren’t succeeding. I may be guilty of this throughout my university career but if so I’m glad I’ve made this mistake early on in my life. I’m going to continue on until I have graduated because it is within my reach but afterwards I am going to spend some time reflecting on what I want to change about life.

Too many people are unwilling to change their life. They like to feel comfortable and secure with routine and order. But the rest of nature doesn’t obey this rule. Things happen per chance according to what nature dishes out. Things are chaotic. Yet, people cling onto the idea of order and predictability. I think finding real pleasure requires a fine balance between feeling secure and feeling free. Too many people these days feel very secure but are slaves to their homes and possessions. A lot of money is spent on these things but real enjoyment often comes free. I previously wrote a post mentioning a few creative activities that I think all people can find enjoyment in.

I’d say the problem comes when success is seen to only be achieved once a goal has been reached. Also, success is too often measured by how good the final result is. Instead, life should be analogous to a piece of music where the point is to simply enjoy it throughout. You don’t wait until the end of the track before feeling good about it. Enjoyment is not always going to come to you. Sometimes it’s your choice. It’s something that should be continuosly searched for. It is not necessary to be great at everything you do. Many people cut themselves off of enjoyable things simply because they are not good at them. Remember, enjoyment comes first and anything you decide to start today you have the chance of becoming a master at it within a few years. If you focus on enjoying it, it doesn’t matter how long it takes.