Most young people between 18- 20 years old have to decisively choose their careers. A career at that age means studying for a college degree which will pave the way for wonderful opportunities in the future.

Few who get help to ask themselves why they are getting enrolled in this and that college.

Why are they studying this field or that major?

What will they do after graduation?

Do they love what they study or not?

Do they study what they study because they love it or because their parents, teachers or friends advised and told them to?

Having academic conversations with students’ services in the college and lengthy chats with the parents arguing the pros and cons do not lead to an eye opening situation. Most academic conversations are trapped in the familiar pattern, study well, get the degree then chase up the dreamy job. The missing link is how to empower and encourage students to ignite their passions. How to guide them to follow what they really want? I deliberately wrote, ignite passions because it is a bit difficult for someone who is 18 years old to meaningfully figure out his or her life purpose. Figuring out a life purpose requires digging deep into past experiences. Igniting a passion demands trying new stuff.

My nephew is a 16 years old whose passion is to play soccer. He loves the game and he is passionate about it. We often chat about likes and dislikes and he always asks about the best ways to get to know his real self. Experimentation is the secret recipe for his age. Try more and experiment more. See what clicks and what does not. Passion discovery is a trial and error stage where errors got to be celebrated to maximize learning.

If you want to be a soccer player, go and play it, try it, change positions within the team and get peer reviews. Make mistakes and celebrate them, Learn by doing and reflecting not by dreaming and worrying about other people’s opinions. 

Know who you are. Discover yourself. Remember, it takes time. 

If you want to learn about investing, seek out practitioners who managed money, lost tons of it and comeback powerful. I would rather spend a training day with Robert kiyosaki, real estate guru and entrepreneur or Ray Dalio rather than spending four years in a university lectured by professors who never touched or made money. 

Medicore people are your enemies, be away from them. Most teachers are average people who gained knowledge but do not know how to apply it. Be careful when you listen to their advice. Their ambitions are limited. Surround yourself with action doers who know what they want to achieve in life. They are older than you. If you cannot find them in the immediate vicinity, search for them online and offline. They are somewhere. Read their books, watch them and learn from their experience. Aim to fly with eagles not to hang out with chicken.  If you want to be an eagle, go strengthen your wings.

Immerse yourself in a trial and error mind-set to discover yourself and remember to get an advice from a practitioner with a proven track record not from a talker” the professor”  with tons of colorful printed certificates.

Most important, learn how to discover yourself, because most people do not know HOW.