“I wish I could retrace my steps!” sighs Sanjay, working with an IT firm. “The nature of my job is so mundane, totally shorn of any intellectual deciphering. Succinctly speaking, it’s just ‘cut and paste’ work, which even a tenth pass can pull off. Besides, there’s the threat of getting ousted from here, when you don’t deliver the goods, not to forget the profession’s concomitant woes of knee pain, backache, eyestrain, et al. I wish I had taken up Mechanical Engineering, for which I had a penchant”, bewails Sanjay.
It’s not uncommon to behold many students choosing an academic course, especially at a crucial phase, much against their wishes. By the time they discern that the move made was downright wrong, the debacle would have turned irrevocable.
Srikanth, a students’ welfare counsellor opines, “The problem with us is that we’re always terrified to traverse on a less trodden path. We feel safe in a herd, being followers/acolytes, rather than being leaders/trailblazers! And of course, we’ve this inherent mercenary attitude too, because of which more and more youngsters are gravitating towards engineering courses, in a bid to procure plum jobs. Unfortunately they are oblivious of the truth that not all engineers draw stupendous salaries. In fact, there are many who are even jobless! Thanks to the burgeoning engineering colleges that are spawning thousands of engineers every year”, he says sardonically.
Apparently, many students are straitjacketing their options today, by setting their sights only on specific courses (simply because it’s a safe bet, or because others are opting for it!) At times, even owing to parental pressures, they’re coerced into choosing a course which they aren’t cut out for. In which case, parents become inadvertently responsible for their wards’ abysmal failures in life.
Like in the case of Sudeep, who joined Medicine under duress! His parents, doctors themselves, virtually forced him to join the course, for which he had no predilection. Obviously, he flunked all his subjects in the first year. Ditto with Sushanth, who lost out two precious years after PU, pandering to his parents’ wishes of seeing him in an IIT! Not only did Sushanth’s desperate struggle to get into an IIT precipitate in a fiasco, the failure also undermined his self-esteem.
Interestingly, there are also those students, who have stuck to their guns, to sculpt scintillating successes out of their lives, without getting swayed by the opinion of others. Just sample these classic cases…
Nitin, for whom Science subjects were anathema, (he even regarded his maths teacher his bete noire!), careened towards Commerce subjects the moment he embarked on college education. With a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce and MBA degree to boot, he has landed a cushy job today.
He says, “Thank heavens I am one of those who never presumed a degree in Engineering is the ultimate in life. Even my parents never felt an engineering course is the be-all and end-all. Here I am today, enjoying my job to the hilt. Yes, we too are assailed by stress at times. But nonetheless, once you like what you’re doing, even a gargantuan task translates into a doddle!”
And then there’s Sanjay, who chucked his Engineering course midway. He veered towards Arts subjects due to his passion for English Literature. What’s more, he experienced thumping success by bagging the gold medal in his final year. He went ahead and got his doctorate too. Presently he is grazing on lucrative pastures abroad, besides enjoying his teaching profession in a prestigious university.
Arjun is yet another dude who forfeited his engineering course for the love of classical dance! He explicates, “Be it any field, initially it is a tough phase and does take time to receive your remuneration. But with undivided focus and assiduous efforts, one can eventually come up trumps. Today, I am paid for what I am enjoying! Often, we have our shows abroad, and I love these jaunts on foreign soils. I’ve shared stage space with many a renowned danseuse. We’ve so much scope for improvising on new techniques. When I’m not performing, I’m disseminating my knowledge of classical dance to my students”, informs Arjun.
And then there’s Nisha who opted for a career in nursing. She candidly reveals, “In an IT obsessed world, this profession may sound like a different kettle of fish. But I joined the course out of my own volition. I was inspired by Mother Theresa. I am deriving ineffable peace, which shoves away my own worries/problems. The work nature may appear a tad morbid, but then again, it’s all in the mind”.
Sunil discovered his manic passion for teaching only after he completed his engineering course! Thanks to his brainwave he launched his own tutorials for PU students, roping in competent teachers from different colleges to render part-time services. Besides the fact that Sunil is enjoying his teaching, the tutorial has turned into a huge money-spinner!
This goes to show that one can succeed in any academic area and become a master in one’s métier (even applicable to those who’re carping of having joined a not-so-popular course in a non-descript college), in case one is determined to pursue the chosen field till the end. In other words, the required ingredients in the recipe for success are – unflinching determination, unswerving will, dollops of diligence and a gung-ho attitude! Of course, if you have great cerebral calibre, a creative and analytical mind, and alacrity to learn more, that’s an added bonanza for you!
So remember, not to subordinate your passion/interests by randomly choosing some course now, as chances are that you may be swamped by disillusionment at a later stage. Opt for a course for which you have genuine passion and not just because ‘someone else is doing it’! Interestingly, there are a number of exciting professions at one’s disposal today – journalism, fashion designing, interior designing, theatre, 3D animation, copy writing, even coffee brewing and many more!
Finally, note, your future to a large extent, hinges upon the vital decision that you make now. So, take time to make the right choice at the right moment, to save yourself from regretting for the rest of your life!
