I just can't decide what I want to do! It's driving my completly insane. I have been messing with computers and the such almost all my life. Since i was 11 I have been working and running my own business on the side. I was working for one the lead marketing companies in TX for awhile as their lead designer and programmer, then I got a new job as the director of information technology at a healthcare corporation where I have been for almost a year now. I am still running my business on the side, doing college online and pursueing several certifications. I feel the need to be exceptional at everything. I buy books and read on everything. I want to keep all of my skills up to date and I always want to learn new things. There are just so many things i love doing, so many things i want to do better and so many things i would love to do that it becomes overwhelming and very distracting. I know i need to concentrate on one thing and become good at that but i just cant decide what because there are soooo many things i enjoy doing and so many things that i am good at. what do i do ?

There's a typical reason why this is happening. YOU ARE ONLY 19. I think you need to take step back and relax and have fun. Pick your favorite thing, and devote your energy to that. You'll only drive yourself nuts if you try and juggle all your interests at once. It's more fun picking something and mastering it, then moving on. It's not any fun if you put all that pressure on yourself, so relax and devote your extra time to hobbies, not extra careers. In ten years you will be laughing at the 19 year old you, and realizing just how young and overambitious you were at that age. Ive been there, as has many other people. 19 is the age to HAVE FUN just as much as it is to find a career. Just my .02

the way i look at it, if i work hard now like i have been my whole life it will greatly pay off in the end. i just don't fit in with others my age. my girlfriend is 22 and all my friends are in their late 20's. you are right about being overambitious and trying to master everything at once. im just trying to make sure i have a good future lined up for myself and my future family.

Just remeber that the ONLY payoff in the end is....DEATH. So for now just live life the way that makes "you" happy, thats all that really matters :-)

Originally posted by sea-rx8
Just remeber that the ONLY payoff in the end is....DEATH. So for now just live life the way that makes "you" happy, thats all that really matters :-)

Amen to that. Worrying does nothing but waste valuable time of what we have to live on this earth. My number one goal, is to be happy. Whatever it takes to be happy, thatls all I care about. If all I thought about was making more money, I'd be consumed, and missing out on so many wonderful things. We all DIE, so you do what you want, and live how ou want. If the way you live now causes you to be stressed and confused, make a change. THe key is to smile and be hapy. If' you are not doing that, you need to take a step back, and try something else.

Honey, I think you need a nice/hot girl to help you get some clear perspective!!! If you know what I mean.... Smile! Just have some fun, take a break.. life is too short... '

Jen

Originally posted by sea-rx8
Just remeber that the ONLY payoff in the end is....DEATH. So for now just live life the way that makes "you" happy, thats all that really matters :-)

LOL, nice one.

Holy crap man! You're 19 & you're an IT manager for a healthcare company? That's insane! Most dedicated people I know get those kind of jobs when they're 30 or 40. Why are you asking people for advice?
I'm 19 and I still haven't decided what degree I'm going to get. Most of my peers don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. I once thought being ambitious and successful would lead to happiness but I'm having second thoughts. Do you think richers are happy? I don't. I think they're workaholics that don't spend enough time having fun. There's a payoff.

I vote with Jen... get a girl and concentrate on THAT! Learn love to perfection! You'll never regret it, one damn important life lesson to learn! :)

Beside it will help you in all your other work by giving a reason to be all that you can be. :D

LOL - I have a girl. She's great. I still have time to have my fun, so it's not like I don't have a life. I just have so many ambitions, i guess I just need to step back for a minute and look at everything and try to figure it out.

DoobyWho, you mentioned you are getting an online college degree? Is this a regular university where they have a few online courses or a 100% online program? If its not a regular U, you need to realize that employers will rarely consider the online degree to have any credibility, that is, they won't respect the degree and will dismiss you as a potential canidate because of it. I am an international tax planner at a Big 4 consulting firm and an adjunct instructor at a state university. A resume with an online degree would get sent to the circular file at my office.

Originally posted by DoobyWho
im just trying to make sure i have a good future lined up for myself and my future family.

That's very admirable, but be careful not to mortgage the present for the future. I mean - don't forget to LIVE in the now occasionally! It's great that you want to plan ahead, but don't dedicate everything to achieving future goals. One of the number one things to learn is hard for ambitious people like you - when retiring (ie age 55 - 65) executives and other very successful people are interviewed, asked what they would do differently if they could do it over, the majority have the same answer: They'd spend more time with their families, and enjoy life more along the way. Far, far too many of them spent 12 or 14 hours a day, 6.5 days a week, focussed on their careers, and when their careers are over, they realize they missed out on a LOT along the way.

As you say, you need to prioritize and plan. Remember to plan for fun stuff too!

Regards,
Gordon

I know how you feel there Dooby...

I co-owned a custom stereo shop and a tuning shop in 90 until I finally decided to go to college in 96 then worked for a local shop in college, Jimmy's Car Stereo (for anyone familiar with Auburn, AL). I started out working with a local crew that were mechanics at Talladega Motor Speedway in AL to learn about the tuning stuff and engines and all that jazz. I picked up the stereo work learning from my grandfather who used to work on old radios and such during his spare time. I used to spend HOURS upon hours in the wood shop with my dad...(he's a pediatrician and that's his relaxation)...I have THOUSANDS of hobbies and hold a major in MIS and a minor (get this) in WILDLIFE and ZOOLOGICAL SCIENCES!!! now tell me if I can't make MY mind up...now I am a senior project manager/Business Systems Analyst for a Teleconferencing company in GA..major stress....I also have a beautiful wife and now a 7 month old daughter..
I mtn climb, mtn bike, kayak, sky dive, landscape, build computers for a small business I started 5 years ago when I was in college, and STILL DO custom stereo installation and all sorts of other stuff, Hell I'm even a Nationally certified Wilderness EMT...I have so many damn things i wanna do time just does not permit most and some times any of them...

what you need to do is...what I did...STOP....focus on being great at one thing until it bores the HELL outta you...then go to the other....but if you're at all like me...diagnosed at age 5 with Attention Deficit Disorder and by the grace of GOD born a GEMINI..YOU CAN"T FOCUS ON DOING ONE...so even though i try to relax I can't....so I'm there with you...i understand what your going through and hope to god they prescribe you XANAX as well...

I have 9 years on you and I'm slowly starting to slow down...I guess it's having kids...