Krista's blog
Class of 2009, Business Major, from Escanaba, MI

Hello!
In continuation with what I was talking about earlier, it’s funny how different people view success and happiness. While I completely understand why money and passion are important, how do we find what truly makes us happy?

Think of it this way. Money doesn’t exist. Everyone is rich, can have whatever they want. What would you do in your life if you didn’t get paid? No need to worry about paying our debts, bills or rent. All we would really have to do is whatever we wanted. What would you do then? If you can answer this question, I would encourage you to pursue this endeavor. You will most likely have no regrets about your choice.
However, if you’re still unsure, it’s ok! Everything will be fine- if you don’t like what you are doing, you can always change it.

I feel like there’s way too much stress on picking a major. It’s important to have one, but after you achieve this, the main thing you get tested on is experience. So even if you don’t like your current job or your current major, just having the experience is a great thing. Plus, you need experience to find out your likes and dislikes. I actually read an article stating that college students experience a quarter-life crisis because of the stress of college and pursuing the future. Please don’t worry so much you go through a crisis! Just focus on what truly makes you happy. Then you can’t go wrong.

In my search for law schools I discovered that UW-Madison and Marquette don't require you to take the bar exam after you graduate their programs. As long as you live in Wisconsin, you would not have to take it! How cool is that? That's one more test I wouldn't have to worry about if I decided to apply to either school.

I also found out if I stay in the job where I'm at now (which I loooove) there are plenty of opportunities to move up the ladder. Plus, the girl that interviewed me is a St. Norbert alum and one of my bosses is also an SNC alum so that really makes me think positively about moving up there someday. It's so cool to see all the opportunities and paths you could take. Not one is necessarily the right or wrong path, it's pretty much just a choice, and if I keep looking at my life that way, I think it will be a lot easier for me to make my decision.

Hello!
It's been some time since I wrote! However, it has been one crazy month! I can't believe how busy it's been- one exam after another, but I'm so glad that those exams are over with!! :)

Anyway, let me just start by saying how supportive my family is. I feel like I could go to college, be $500,000 in debt with a degree, then five minutes later change my mind and decide I'd rather get a job where a degree isn't necessary and they'd be all for it! They really are amazing. However, I have not changed my major yet!!!! I know most of you don't know how amazing it is that I haven't, but, let's just say I've had about 5 majors since coming here so almost a full year with the same major is REALLY amazing. What's more amazing is I'm not sick of it! Well, some of the classes of course, but for the majority of them, I love them!

So this past weekend my parents helped us move into a new (and beautiful!) apartment. We were just talking about random things, when I decided to ask them if they could go to college again for anything, what they would major in and what their dream job would be.

My mom was a speech pathology major at Western University in Michigan. She loved it, but soon after, the major requirements changed and she couldn't really use her major for anything she wanted to. She now has a successful job working at home, and loves it. I'm so proud of her. She really gave up so much of her success just so she could raise 3 girls, and now she gets the best of both worlds! :) She told me is she could go back to school, she would go for audiology because she would love to help people and watch them grow.

My dad also graduated from Western University and was kind of like me in that it seems like he had a lot of different majors and to tell you the truth, I can't even remember which one he stuck with. Now, he is very successful as well, fighting crime and fires. He is an emergency management coordinator (aka a captain for our public safety department at home) and really started from scratch. Looking back, I remember going out to eat and celebrating whenever he got a promotion... and now that I think about it, it happened quite often. He is such a hard worker and really provided for our family. When I asked him what he would go to school for, he had quite a different answer than my mom. He kept saying things like a physical therapist, or a doctor, or things that seemed like they paid well. Then I told him he couldn't go by money, he had to pick something he's really passionate about, and he said teaching.

Just a small conversation really taught me a lot on how people view picking their life choice. My mom picked something that would make her happy, while my dad picked something dependable that he knew would make a decent amount of money. Two very different perspectives, but two very important factors in many peoples' lives.
More on what I learned later :)
Hope everyone had a great Easter!!!