My story is all about lacking clarity without being totally clueless.
Pursuing my love of calculus and algebra, I went into freshman year as a math major. I had a clear picture of what I wanted to be when I graduated – an actuary. I spent 4 years in the Future Business Leaders of America in high school, and was happy to discover a career that combined math and business. Following this plan, in sophomore year at Swarthmore I took an actuarial science class at The Wharton School. I looked forward to the class, not knowing what lay around the corner…
… overwhelming regret and disappointment.
I hated every moment of it, and dreaded everything about it. How can two subjects I love turn into something I hate? How can something that combines math and business be so boring? I definitely should have researched this career more. I didn’t have the answers, but one thing I knew was I had to change my path before the end of sophomore year.
“Back to the drawing board.”
That statement is so befitting because I did go back to my first love – art. Given Swarthmore’s academic rigor, I had to study something I always loved and was always good at. I had no clue what I was going to do with this degree, but I had to focus on getting A’s and graduating within 4 years.
Under quite a bit of pressure, I switched programs to art history. Now I was learning about great artists, true innovators and visionaries, as well as the times in which they lived. I loved learning from Tomoko Sakumra and Constance Hungerford about fascinating topics like visual culture, conceptualism, and the beauty of abstraction.
I can confidently say that I have no regrets about my B.A. in Art History. Just like with abstraction, I can’t clearly see what’s coming, but that’s the beauty of it. I’ve realized that I don’t need a plan for everything. Uncertainty makes for an adventure, and it’s made me adaptable. I’ve learned to prepare for the future, whatever it may bring. It’s made me keep my eyes wide open; I’ve gotten pretty good at identifying opportunities as they appear. And as long as I’m doing what I love and learning along the way, I feel at peace.
I’ve been following this methodology for the past 6 years. Now, I find myself as an independent product designer, with hopes of growing into a consulting business for Black-owned internet companies. I’ll be a student again soon because I yearn to learn more about finance and management. But I don’t know where or when, and that’s ok!
My plan is and always will be to stay adaptable and keep an eye out for great opportunities as they become visible.