- I followed my dreams and became a teacher instead of following a high salary.
- Now that my kids are in college and everything is more expensive, I want them to find a sustainable job.
- Hopefully, they can find a high -pay job they love.
As a little girl, my favorite place was the city library, where I would check the books as long as I did. Once I could read, my head was full of dreams.
I wanted to develop a life -saving cancer treatment, surround the globe as a winning award journalist and perform as a famous ballerina. I believed that a life worth living was a life spent following passions, especially when it came to a dream career.
With so many dreams, choosing a path felt impossible. As a result, I changed my biggest college more times than I changed my loved ones. Eventually, I graduated with a master’s degree in English teaching. I wanted to go through my passion to discover the world and new words for students.
Over the past 20 years, I have learned high school classes and college. I have seen students clash their closed books into disappointment at the end of the “Animal Farm” and sit in silence after returning the last page of “Mice and Men”. I have helped the first college students to destroy the theses and to calm the nerves of dozens of high school students preparing for speech competitions. I sworn and threatened, and I was invited to weddings and showers for children.
The lesson has been, in a word, a dream. But dreams do not always come with a livable salary.
Dream jobs don’t pay bills
Because of my parents and scholarships, I received an advanced degree without debt. I have a man whose work provides a good salary and good benefits, so we can allow eggs (for now), take modest vacations and send our children to college.
But if I had to take care of a family of four with my salaries, it would be impossible.
I followed my dreams, not the money. But is it still good advice in today’s world?
I am the mother of two young adult boys who start on their college and career paths, and I’m not sure if I have to tell them to follow their passions.
One guy expressed an interest in journalism, but in a world of him generators and mass holidays, This may not be a wise decision. Even the world of technology is no longer feeling a safe bet.
“Find a career that enlivens you, is prone to it, pays well and comes with great benefits,” I want to tell them. I can also tell them to find me a pet unanimous while they are in it.
I know the world is different now when talking to my boys
When I chose to pursue my dreams decades ago, renting for my studio apartment cost $ 400 a month. The gas cost $ 1.50 in Gallon, and a dozen eggs were less than $ 1. The economy and world news were not all optimistic, but I had no social media by throwing negativity on my face every minute.
I almost fell out of my chair when my son told me how much Qiraj would cost to share an apartment with three friends next year – over $ 850 for each tenant. How will the costs be when graduating in a few years and trying to make them themselves? As the prices of housing rise, I photograph my boys living in our basement and survive in beans and rice. They will not be able to withstand eggs.
I want my boys to have fulfilling careers and experience the same energetic incentive I get after running a class discussing or seeing a student have that magical moment A-ha. I want them to have work without the intimidation of Sunday, where they build community and make a change in a world that can feel hopeless.
But I also want them to be able to pay their bills, take some amazing holidays, and generously give the causes they care about.
I dream they can have the best of both worlds
I understand that this is a false dichotomy. My husband’s career does not fill him with much passion, but his work is satisfactory and pays firmly. I have friends with successful corporate careers that do not kill their souls and come with great benefits.
I can tell my boys to choose a career that pays bills without making them miserable. And whenever possible, they can follow the passions of life-whether inside or outside of work. Perhaps those volunteers in a post -school program or do some independent writings so they can nourish their dreams and put food on the table.
The world has changed, but the goal still matters. I discovered this in my childhood books and have tried it in a fulfilled career. Now, as my boys follow their paths, I dream of finding a way to live and really live.