Charlene Belew
Managing Editor
@CBelew15
A professor of mine once showed a rather moving YouTube video to our class titled “If Money Were No Object” by Allen Watts. I’ve carried his message with me since.
“What makes you itch?” he asks in the first few seconds. “What would you like to do if money were no object? How would you really enjoy spending your life?”
The importance of this message is undeniable. Sometimes I sit and think if there are better pathways to travel to obtain the future I want. I could be a doctor. I could be teacher. I could own a business. But these fields aren’t my passion.
Writing is.
“You do that, and forget the money,” he says.
It’s true that being a journalist may not make me the richest person. It’s true that some journalists are underpaid, overworking, exhausted and still pushing to get better.
But when I really consider other alternatives, I shudder. I could never do something that I wasn’t full-heartedly dedicated to for the rest of my life. Essentially, Watts says that doing things you don’t like doing to continue living to do those things is “stupid.”
I’m happy when I’m always pushing to get better. I’m happy when I’m always in the office. I’m happy that meeting deadlines is stressful. It makes me thrive.
So I write.
The people I work with, both in the Collegian office and at The Duncan Banner, share my interests. They may not necessarily stay in the journalistic realm forever, but they see the importance of the field and what it truly should be.
They help make the struggles worth it.
“Somebody’s interested in everything.”
The bright side to being in a career field you’re happy with is having wonderful people to work with. Not all days are the best, and that’s okay. When you love the people you work with, and find yourself in a career field that constantly motivates and inspires you, you’re in luck, regardless of the dollar sign that’s attached to it.
That’s what I’m thankful for. I’m thankful that I’ve found something that makes me “itch.”
In the end, he asks one more question: “what do you desire?”
As we make the motions to get us closer to graduation, consider this question. Consider if you’re happy with where you are and where you’re going. Make sure that you’re living your life to the fullest for yourself, not for the money or for the people pushing you into a career field you may hate.
You’ll thank yourself later.