<p>I can't seem to find ways to cope with failure. I recently performed poorly on a Microeconomics Midterm and I feel like I have hit rock bottom. My family has always pressured me into pursuing a career in the field of Business and because of this I seem like I have lost the ability to find what I am passionate about in life. All I think about when I choose a career is the salary and whether or not my family approves of such a career plan. It seems our generation has lost the luxury of choosing our paths in life. I can't seem to find the purpose in college b/c there is a chance that the university will just crush my dreams in two years if I make a single mistake. Economics seems like the only other choice if I am unable to get into the business school and from what I hear Economics is quite useless when looking for a job. I honestly don't know what to do with my life and I feel truly hopeless.</p>
<p>Start taking a variety of courses and see what you like. Forget about your parents. You cannot live your life based on what they want. Even if you did succeed in business and make a high salary, is it worth being miserable for years until you finally <em>do</em> decide to follow your passions? It’s tough to do well in classes you hate unless they are required to achieve something you really want. </p>
<p>Do you live on campus or do you commute from home? If you’re on campus, limit your communication with your family if they become too pushy. Avoid talking about school and if they push the topic, say you have to go study and hang up the phone. There is no point in being miserable just to make someone else happy. </p>
<p>Besides, I know quite a number of students who pursued business degrees and haven’t gotten any real job offers. Heck, I have a BA in psychology and I’m a human resources manager, and could probably work up to an operations manager (a pretty decent salaried position) in a year without having ever taken a business course. It depends on the industry you’re in. A lot of it is personality and motivation.</p>
<p>Thank you for the informative and helpful advice. I commute from home so I’m guessing that is also influencing my current state.</p>
<p>Your school should have some kind of career center. Go there and see if they have any kind of career assessment test which will match your personality and strengths to various careers. It should give you several options to investigate, and they should be able to give you some guidance. Also, see if you can get a copy of the book, Do What You Are: Discover the Perfect Career for You Through the Secrets of Personality Type. Your library might have it, or they might be able to get it through library loan. If not, it’s available used on the internet. Maybe you can also meet with a counselor to find out how to better communicate with your family. They probably just want what’s best for you, but you do need to find and follow your own passions. Sometimes we need help finding that path.</p>
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