[Freeda]

I would add that I think I chose the law profession without much thought. I think many people do that. Careers should ideally be chosen after careful reflection of one's goals and life priorities/lifestyle that one wants. Reading Napoleon Hill's book Think and Grow Rich would be a great way to start in pondering a career/business; and I think that all high school students should read this book.

I had no mentor to lead me in this direction of thinking, as neither of my parents had gone to college or considered career choices; my mother did not work other than briefly, and my father, although he was successful in his work life, had just taken the first job that was available to him after coming home from WWII; I don't think he was ever particularly happy with his work.

So, after high school I immediately went to college and studied music education, as sort of a kneejerk decision because music had been my main interest through childhood and high school, so being a music major was just an automatic decision of continuing the same life with which I was already familiar. It wasn't until after I graduated from college that reality set it, and it occurred to me that making a good living with my degree was going to be a challenge. Loving music shouldn't have just 'automatically' lead me to sign up to be a music major; but nothing had pointed that out to me before I chose my college major.

I had dated a guy while in college who was in law school, so really just from that one influence, I decided, "great, I'll just go to law school, too", because I realized, after finishing college, that I wanted to be sure that I could be financially self-sufficient, and, once again, as sort of a 'kneejerk' decision, I just chose law because I had been exposed to that career choice through my having dated someone; it was the only thing I had had any 'glimpse' of. I never pondered the 'big picture' of what I wanted my life to be like, and how a law practice would tie in with the family and personal lifestyle that I wanted. If I had, I probably would have looked further and chosen a more entrepreneurial path.

I think that what happened to me happens to many of us; we get started on a career path, start working, develop house payments, car payments etc based on that income stream; and then we get so caught up in it all that we never stop to reflect on whether we should, or can, change our life; and so we overlook options that exist, because we are not aware of them; are skeptical or fearful of change; or don't take the time to actually study them. Many times we are (I know I definitely was) "too busy chopping wood to stop and sharpen the ax"; too busy and stressed to look up from our work and our lifestyle to consider the big picture, and whether we have enough contentment and happiness in how we are living our life.

My point is, don't just automatically continue what you are doing simply because it is what you have always done. You can change your life, if you decide that you should. Only you can decide that; maybe you will decide that your life is fine as it is.

The idea that there is security in having a job is, at least sometimes, a myth, as many unemployed people who have been blindsided would attest to. What you build for yourself is the only thing that no one can take away from you. Counting on living out your retirement life on savings, pensions, or Social Security is also a precarious position, as many are finding.