what do you want to do? i...well...um...

College is supposed to prepare you for your career. There are two problems with this: most people have no idea what they want their career to be in college and knowing what you want to do involves knowing who you are. As a recent college graduate (again, self-indulgent shout out: creative ad major, Newhouse School, Syracuse University) I can say that the aforementioned expectation is a little backwards. My perception is that college helps you define who you are in order to figure out your career. Those cherished four years are the ultimate opportunity to explore all your interests through classes and extracurricular activities. College should be every student's experimental arena to screw up or succeed as much as possible, as long as they discover something about themselves.

My dad always told me that you have to have a passion in life. As I got older, he explained that it would be a logical move (and he knows how much I love logic) to find a career that incorporates that passion. Even though my dad never said anything remotely alluding to this, I thought a person's passion had to be something morally admirable, skillfully substantial...or something along those lines.

It took going through college to come to terms with my passion: entertainment & pop culture. Of course this is a fancy way to say that I love TV, celebrity gossip, and glossy magazines. What's wrong with that? NOTHING. Newhouse helped me realize that I could apply a universally praised skill - writing - to pursue that passion.

I thought I wanted to be an art director in an ad agency when I went into college, so I majored in creative advertising. I kept telling myself that I was following in my mom's footsteps of being a graphic designer (ruzowgraphics.com) because I so thoroughly enjoyed looking at graphic design websites and discussing captivating visuals with her. Newhouse classes got me to write and think creatively, constantly challenging me to come up with the next best thing. I became obsessed with individual words and typography, brand identity and strategic planning. My friends have heard me say that word choice is SO paramount to a person's ability to communicate. I'll say it again and put emphasis on MY word choice: I was and am obsessed with words.

I'll be honest - I still can't perfectly define my career path in terms of a job title. What I can do is tell anyone the elements of my dream job and cross my fingers that they know what the hell I'm talking about.

• writing in a promotional capacity - whether it's articles, ad headlines, tweeting, or packaging copy.
• involvement in event coordination and/or promotion - creative organization of some capacity.
• in or about the entertainment industry, with necessary knowledge of pop culture.

The bottom line is that I think I am prepared to be an effective wordsmith in the art of promotional persuasion.

Now that you know what I want to do, think about yourself. What is something you enjoy doing on an everyday basis? What are the topics of articles that pique your interest? What can you talk about for hours on end? What was the class that induced a bored drool in most students but that kept you on your toes during every lecture? WHAT DO YOU LOVE?

Ok, now take that love and apply a skill to it. Writing/speaking/math/analyis/organization/whatever. There are so many jobs out there that you would never think exist. You'll be surprised at what you can find within your passion. I have a friend whose curiosity is one of the things I admire about her because she raises so many questions on a daily basis. She constantly asks things like "who do you think is responsible for doing THAT?" when she finds something that is new and interesting. Maybe next time, you can be the answer to her question.

I wish I had some links to help you find your passion, but unfortunately this one is on YOU. (no pressure.)

P.S. I include images at the end of each post because of another passion - design - that I learned in college that I wanted to save for my personal satisfaction. Today I'll include a video ABOUT design and a fun font find.

Graphic Design: The Forgotten Web Standard - Slides in 3 Minutes from Carsonified on Vimeo.

fun font find - whitney.