Career day is one of the greatest days as a kid. Everyone gets to be a doctor or a scientist. Everyone always has such big dreams. The kid who loves the monkey bars is going to be a pilot; the kid who can’t sit still will be an Olympian.
But as we age, we seem to lose some of that vigor.
In middle school, life changes. A classmate says they want to be a professional football player, and the eye-rolls are immediate. You want to be a doctor? You failed the last science test, and passed out when you got a paper cut. There’s just no way you can succeed at that.
It isn’t until high school that teenagers realize that if they do want that job, it’s going to be a lot of work.
And it’s going to take more than a stethoscope, a clipboard, or a cool hat.
It’s going to take late nights, early mornings, and a lot of caffeine.
Teenagers are under a lot of stress to be great all the time, and it is no longer okay to be great in just one subject. With college seemingly always around the corner, one bad test can feel like your chances of success are ruined.
And college isn’t the only thing putting pressure on students. Demanding coaches, administration, and parents can all play a role in the vicious game of perfection that students must play. When practice starts at 2:30, you have 30 minutes for extra help.
That’s if you’re lucky. Some teams have lifting beginning as early as 2:05.
Some of this pressure is good pressure. Tests are needed to ensure students actually learn information. Competition is there to force perseverance and dedication. And competencies are made to set up a standard for education. All these skills are needed to make students college and career ready, and students do need to work hard in order to get those skills.
However, the students of LHS need to remember that there is more to life than the little letter on their report card. There are certain opportunities–like taking an elective class “just because” or attending a football game instead of studying–that should not be passed up. You can be successful in life without straight A’s.
But it is going to be hard.
Students are under a tremendous amount of stress but will need to be able to cope in order to make it in the big-kid world. You can’t let all the stress take away the playfulness of career day. You have to find a balance.
So be childish sometimes, and apply it to your talents, even if that is not school. Nobody cares if Tony Hawk can’t do calculus. Because in the grown-up world, all you need is enough brains to fill your hat of choice and one great talent to change the world.
