Finding Your Purpose in College

Here is the first little part of the first chapter of my book. It's the only part (aside from the intro) that I'm really happy with so far. Figured you might be interested to read it. Any feed back is welcome and appreciated! (Oh, and if any of it sounds familiar, that's because I reused some of my SIU talk material in parts...but I figured it wouldn't be a big deal to rip myself off. John Williams and James Horner do it all the time!)

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It's typical for someone to seek advice and reassurance when facing a big life decision. Whether or not to go to college definitely falls under that category and has caused enough anxiety over the years to inspire an entire sub-genre of self-help books devoted to the subject. Most have catchy titles and large print and seek to impart readers with enough practical tips that they will be sure to survive their first year on campus. Unfortunately, most of these books stick to the basics and neglect the core issues that cause many of the problems they address. Fact is, it really isn't that difficult to survive in college. As long as you go to class most of the time, eat and sleep enough to stay moderately healthy, and pay your tuition bills on time, you shouldn't have too much trouble "earning" a degree. In reality, the biggest problem young college students face is not how to avoid flunking out but how to find the motivation to do their best. Getting a college education takes a lot of time and money and, unless you have a good reason for being there, it might be easier to just give up and find something better to do.

If you haven't done so yet, now would be a great time to sit down and really think about why you want to go to college, and what you hope to get out of it. Do you have a specific career in mind and need this education in order to achieve it? Are you uncertain what you want to do in the future and are hoping to discover your life's passion amid all the classes a university offers? Or maybe your motives have less to do with gaining an education and more to do with getting away from your parents, friends, and everything familiar so you can start over?

A surprising number of young people apply to college simply because that's the logical next step in growing up and all of their friends are doing it. These are the people I worry about the most. Because they don't desire to do anything more than enjoy themselves, they waste a huge amount of time partying, sleeping and goofing off. Theirs might be that iconic college experience you see in the movies - full of exciting sports events, occasional mundane class appearances, and surprisingly enticing displays of social debauchery - but in the end they will have nothing to show for the years they invested there except a sizable beer belly, a series of messy, shallow relationships and a degree in a field that they may not even care about.

You might be wondering what possible "deeper purpose" a person could have for going to college. Isn't the point to get a degree so you can have a lucrative career after you graduate? Sadly, that is all most high school students are being told. But, if you think about it, a college degree is just a piece of paper stating that you've studied a subject for several hourss. Even with a diploma in hand, you may not be qualified or prepared for the job you really want, and it certainly doesn't mean that you really learned anything substantive or grew as a person while you were at that institution.

One of the most important things I learned while in school is that college is about so much more than just going to class and getting a degree. You will be presented with so many opportunities to grow and expand your horizons, and much of what you encounter will challenge who you think you are and what you know about the world. You will meet all kinds of people with whom you can build meaningful, lasting relationships. Some of the most important lessons you learn will come from outside of the classroom. The sum total of your experiences in college will mold you into the person you will be for the rest of your life.

You may not end up taking full advantage of your college degree. (I know I definitely have not, and probably never will). But even if you don't, I want you to walk away from your chosen school feeling like the time you invested there was 100% worth it. Simply surviving won't give you that feeling. No, in order to truly live it up in college and be completely satisfied, you need to do more than survive. You need to learn how to THRIVE!