I’ve been receiving “beau coup” flack from students and professors alike for quitting a perfectly good job, with the economy being the way it is.
I was hired as a cop reporter in September by the Tallahassee Democrat, Tallahassee’s local newspaper.
They offered me benefits, and a 401K plan.
But most importantly it was a secure job in a presently unstable market.
I resigned three months later.
Bad decision, some might think say.
I on the other hand am content with my status of unemployment.
The decision was rushed, and rather than spend countless months and maybe years doing something I didn’t enjoy, I left despite graduation being around the corner.
Teachers criticized me for quitting a “perfectly good job,” while people are losing and looking for employment.
My friends think I’m crazy, but I had to make the decision to follow my heart, as cheesy as that may sound.
Though I won’t divulge what my career aspirations are, I do know they are not inclusive of sitting at a desk listening to scanners and making phone calls.
Luckily for me, when I walk across the stage next Friday I will do so without any student loans to pay off, without a monthly car note or any child support payments to make, which is a miracle in my eyes (Thank you Jesus).
But this still manifests the question: Is the measure of one’s collegiate success determined by whether or not you receive that job upon graduation?
And for someone like me, selecting a career has always been an issue.
When I was younger I never had a steadfast answer to the question: What do you want to do when you grow up?
My career aspirations ranged from football player and video game designer to lawyer or professional wrestler – indecisive, I know.
Now a week before graduation a variation of the same question looms: What do you want to do when you graduate?
The answer is still not concrete.
I want to write, I want to travel, I want to go back to school and get another degree – I want to teach.
And luckily for me I have three months of experience discovering what I don’t want to do.
Unfortunately, after Dec. 12 many students will end up scampering around looking for the first job they can get their hands on.
And not the job they want.
I urge my fellow graduates with the opportunity to do so, to not settle for the first thing that comes along.
As my teacher says, two or three years is a drop in the bucket to search out the job that will utilize your passion.
Many of us have heard the stories from the older griots talking about how they would do things differently and longing to return to school if they had the chance.
Well our chance is now.
The truth is the jobs available now may not be there when you come back.
But what’s ahead will remain unknown, if our focus is on what’s left behind.
Anthony Anamelechi is a graduating senior from Washington, D.C. He can be reached at famuanopinions@gmail.com.