Hi,

I am in my early twenties and I don't know what to do with my life. I've never had a job before and I struggle with social anxiety and depression. I'm going to graduate from University in 2 months with a bachelor of arts majoring in creative writing...but I regret doing that major. I want to write books and publish them but that's going to be something more on the side. I just don't have the confidence in working in a publishing firm which was what I was intending when I decided on that degree. Now everyone will ask me 'What are you going to do next?" "are you doing honors?" My degree won't get me any job and is pretty much useless. So in a way, I feel like I've wasted 4 years of my life. My plan is to write books on the side, maybe sell some art on an online art store and then have my main job.

I just don't know what I want for that main job. My plan I had a month ago was to go to TAFE and do animal studies so I could work with animals and help them because I love my pets and I want to care for animals...until I found out how low paying all the jobs are and that if I want to move out of my parent's house then I won't be able to support myself on a salary of $20aud an hour. I really want this but the low pay is the only thing stopping me. I have a strong desire to help animals.

My mum suggested that I should do a diploma in nursing and work as an enrolled nurse instead of a veterinary nurse or zookeeper, etc. The pay is much better and nurses are respected too. BUT...I just don't know if caring for people is something that I'll like...I've never done it before so I'm just unsure.

This has been really stressing me out and causing me a lot of distress I just don't know what to do. I don't want to be living in my mum's house at the age of 30 because I want to be independent and feel like my life has actually started, you know? I also have hobbies like karate. I want to start dancing and also act in plays and movies because I used to really want to be an actress. I feel like a failure and that I've disappointed my mum and myself. I compare myself to other people and I don't want my life to be meaningless. I don't want to be unhappy. I can't remember the last time I was happy. I REALLY miss being a kid. You dreamt of things and you didn't feel like a disappointment. Kids have the ability to dream and be happy and I feel like I can't do that no matter how hard I try. Other people look at me as if I'm okay but the truth is on the inside, I'm drowning.

Hi, welcome

I've witnessed a lot of young adults confused like you.

I was lucky, I joined the defence forces at 17yo and had a vast choice of career paths. I found that helping people was an inner desire that became a passion that led to Beyondblue many years later. I'm 65 now.

Remember, you don't have to know your career path. It isn't your fault you lack that direction. With your education and desire for nursing perhaps a more specialised field like psychiatric nurse might suit. Such qualifications can lead to counseling or treating mentally ill patients

Just don't worry.

Google... Beyondblue topic worry worry worry

TonyWK

Hi Belle.Rey19,

Reading your post, I honestly thought I could be writing this right now. I'm in my early twenties, have a music degree and when I realised I wasn't going to get a job in it, I jumped in to do a masters in marketing. I realised I really don't like marketing and now my HELP debt is through the roof and I feel quite lost about what to do as well.

I live out of home in a different state to my parents which is a move I made right after finishing my music degree, so I don't have the choice to move back home and work part time while I study again (which will probably cap out my HELP debt anyway). So you're in a really lucky position at the moment.

You don't need to know what you're going to do right now and you might decide on something now but change your mind in a couple of years time. They reckon millenials and gen z will change careers up to 5 times throughout their lives - and technically you haven't started yours yet!

At the moment, I'm leaning towards working in support work or social work, which will require me to go back to uni and do a bachelors degree because music isn't relevant so I can't do a masters. What I would like to do before making this huge decision is work in the industry first to see if I like it. Maybe you could have a look at working in admin at a hospital or at reception at a vet just to dip your toes in the water and see if you really like it. You may also like to reach out to people on LinkedIn who have jobs that you think you might like to see if they'd be open to answering some questions about their work.

Remember, everyone has a different journey in life and just because yours isn't like others doesn't mean it's bad. Though I'm still trying to figure out what I want to do, I've spoken with people who have gotten jobs straight out of uni and aren't happy because they feel trapped in a career now. So there's always two sides to the story.

Do the things you love, make the most of living at home and put yourself out there to find what you're calling is :)