How do you know when it is the time to change careers and life goals/ambitions?

[iironiic]

There are moments when I thought it was reasonable to consider a different career path, but I am quite honestly unsure. What should I consider when making a terrifying decision like this?

[infinity.]

I've always been a math / analytic person. I was going to start college two years early to pursue a math degree so I could finish grad school early and work towards a job in academia.

After going to college and trying it out for a while, I found it hard to really get into what I was studying -- I didn't want to sit down and struggle through problem sets or study new material on my own. Although professors were cool and the idea of knowing math really well is super appealing to me, the only classes I was really enjoying were ones where I could work on arguments, persuasion, and language. Kept trying math for a little longer than I would have liked, and it finally hit me when one of my professors told me how to handle the workload in his class (knowing I wanted to do math): "Just do it in your free time, go above and beyond."

I didn't want to with math. So I switched. I wouldn't say switch whenever you have any doubt; doubt is good, try other disciplines, search other avenues while pursuing your current track. If one feels more *right*, though, then go for it.

[L.B.D.D]

if you're 22 you better buckle down

[Hakulyte]

What is making you question your current goal?
What's the alternative?
Are you confident at this point and time that changing your goal is more efficient on long term?
By efficient, I don't just mean money, but also how you feel as a person and what you value.
Probably nearly every careers have things that you like less and more so, it's important to keep in mind that what you have in mind may not be as great as you expect. If you still feel like it counterbalance more for the new choice, then it's probably time to move on.
There's no set standards or exact guidelines on when you should exactly quit. You have to sit back for a moment and think at where this future is going and act accordingly.
You can also wait until you hit a wall, see your motivation crumble on top of your grades, but trust me, it's not a really pleasant experience and you should skip this part if you can.

[Dynam0]

Hindsight is always 20/20; don't put too much pressure on yourself to make the right move at the right time and regret nothing. Towards the end of completing teacher's college I had decided that the teaching profession was not something in which I was prepared to spend upwards of 2 years going through hoops to finally get my own classroom (Ontario is so swamped with teachers it's backed up like crazy). The passion for teaching wasn't there and I felt that I wanted to try something else that would allow me to use my talents in logistics/problem solving rather than communication and patience/parenting skills.

A foolish thing for me to do would have been to drop teacher's college halfway through so my only advice is to not cut yourself from an academic degree unless it satisfies the "how much I hate my life vs. time remaining in degree" scale.

[Arkuski]

Originally Posted by iironiic

There are moments when I thought it was reasonable to consider a different career path, but I am quite honestly unsure. What should I consider when making a terrifying decision like this?

Rough first semester of grad school? If so, PM me! I'm sure we had a lot of the same experiences.

[Reincarnate]

If you're truly unsure, pick something that will at least make you well-rounded enough to have options later.

There's nothing wrong with changing your course whenever you want, really, especially when you're young. Some people completely change industries/professions into their 30's, 40's, and even 50's and still do just fine and have happy, fulfilling lives.

I think there's too much emphasis on optimizing shit when you're too young to make that decision with any sort of wisdom, and there really isn't an optimal solution because sometimes it makes sense to change course depending on your goals and the nature of the current markets.

I went to business school where I basically studied intense finance, only to find that I didn't like pure finance in the real world. I've since changed course and have been much happier for it, and I've actually been able to expand my skills in the meantime. Changing courses can be great if it means you become a double or even triple threat.

[Frank Munoz]

Originally Posted by Dynam0

i'm diggin' this graph.
but, funny thing for me is that i've been at the kill me phase since i began my degree and now i'm at the suck it up line with one more semester to go. woot

[Spenner]

If you are choosing on a basis of happiness/enjoyment/passion, it could be anytime I'd say, but that's IF you have an action plan to ensure you get into it, and can live off it. If you have a passion for fine art and work as an engineer, don't fukkin do it. Some things can be approached slowly on the side, and gradually switched over to. That's kinda what I'm doing now.

I am a graphic designer but I have a greater passion and better eye for photography, and enjoy the immediacy of the results, but in many many cases this is NOT a career path, and I've not let myself pursue it. However recently I've been shown that I might be able to get a gig with a popular wedding DJ to be part of a package, or at least to have my foot in the door as a general photographer.

If that happens to work out, I'll taper off being a designer and build up to being a photographer, and still do graphic design on the side. If the need arises, I'll shift my attention back to design. The same could be said for anyone if they have two or more things within reach, but obviously there's more factors involved than just hopping back and forth between careers (that's for the person to watch out for and be smart about).

[dAnceguy117]

I don't know if there's ever a "right" or "wrong" time. there are potential pros and cons. there are unpredictable outcomes.

I like that how much my life sucks graph, strictly in terms of academics. college/university is an investment, so if a certain amount of time and money has already been sunk into getting a degree, the payoff (receiving the shiny piece of paper) is almost definitely worth gutting things out for a year. to me, 2+ years remaining while on an undesired track would be an appropriate time to pull the plug and start from scratch. for grad school, I have no idea honestly; I can't weigh in on that.

from an overall perspective, though? consider how much you do or don't want to do the thing you're currently doing. consider how much you believe you would prefer some other thing. think about what kind of income you want or need in the long run. figure out what you need to do in order to obtain a position, how long it'll take, and how much it'll cost.

do your homework. if you're at high school or college/uni, ask counselors and teachers. if you're not in school, ask people in the workplace and people everywhere.

finally, seconding what Rubix said. 30's, 40's, 50's shouldn't be too late. I think the right time is whenever you decide it's the right time.


/2cents from someone who has always wondered about this question

[iironiic]

Thank you all for the very helpful responses. There are some things that I probably should mention, but I'll do it as I comment on some of your posts:

Originally Posted by Hakulyte

What is making you question your current goal?
What's the alternative?
Are you confident at this point and time that changing your goal is more efficient on long term?
By efficient, I don't just mean money, but also how you feel as a person and what you value.
Probably nearly every careers have things that you like less and more so, it's important to keep in mind that what you have in mind may not be as great as you expect. If you still feel like it counterbalance more for the new choice, then it's probably time to move on.
There's no set standards or exact guidelines on when you should exactly quit. You have to sit back for a moment and think at where this future is going and act accordingly.
You can also wait until you hit a wall, see your motivation crumble on top of your grades, but trust me, it's not a really pleasant experience and you should skip this part if you can.

My original plan is to either pursue academic research in mathematics while teaching university classes or enter industry for mathematical research. Some things that made me wonder about my potential in this career are based on some of my past experiences: It first started when I attended an REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) at Penn State about two summers ago. I realized that I wasn't as motivated than I should be and the fact that the REU wasn't organized properly didn't help the cause as well. It was also around the same time when my father passed away from cancer, so I presumed that this unfortunate event also affected my decision. After that summer, I stayed at Penn State for the semester and studied abroad the following semester at Budapest to take very fascinating math classes and although I enjoyed the classes, I wish I was more motivated to try. I didn't get the best grades, but they aren't horrendous grades for my lack of effort. Fast forward a few months after, I am now in graduate school at the University of South Carolina taking classes and trying my hardest to do well in them. My first semester wasn't extremely rough, but it could definitely be a lot better had I tried harder. I am however unsure if I am unmotivated because I had lost my flair for mathematics (theoretical math that is) or if it is just caused by a series of unfortunate events, making academia research very discouraging to pursue. It doesn't help when the people in the mathematical community makes you feel a bit out of the loop. When I was attending the math conference at Clemson University a few weekends ago, I was the only first year student there trying to understand the mathematical content presented by fourth+fifth year graduates, and unfortunately I couldn't understand much of it. My friend Rich who I carpooled to and from the math conference did tell me to not "give up" because he realizes that the level of the talks are too difficult to understand for a first year graduate student. I only went to help expose myself to higher level of mathematics and to establish stronger connections with people from other schools.

Alternatively, I have considered becoming an actuary. I have been doing some practice problems and I have been asking other prospective actuaries for some insight on how to prepare for exams and such. Although the math is very different compared to theoretical math, I think I would find myself understanding it more. I have been scoring well on the probability sample actuary exams, but I want to prepare for it a lot more before being sure that I will pursue this career. I am however nervous about the exams past probability, so I will have to be motivated to try and understand financial mathematics. Another possible career for me is one related to economics or statistics. I realize that mathematics is extremely crucial in economics academic research. I haven't put much thought into this, but I have been browsing a few microeconomics theory lecture notes online and finding it enjoyable. I have taken a few statistics classes during my undergraduate curriculum, but I realize that theoretical statistics is on another planet. These are some of my alternative options.

I am confident that if I do decide to change paths in my career, it would definitely take some work, but my mathematics acquired in the past wouldn't fully be put to waste. It will most likely be very difficult and very discouraging however. A part of me is telling me that research mathematics is the way to go, but the other part would find more enjoyment in any of the alternative plans that I mentioned. I am really unsure what I want to do and I have been pondering about my choices to this very day.

Originally Posted by Arkuski

Rough first semester of grad school? If so, PM me! I'm sure we had a lot of the same experiences.

Not too rough, but definitely could have been better. I will try to be a lot more motivated next semester.

Originally Posted by Reincarnate

If you're truly unsure, pick something that will at least make you well-rounded enough to have options later.

There's nothing wrong with changing your course whenever you want, really, especially when you're young. Some people completely change industries/professions into their 30's, 40's, and even 50's and still do just fine and have happy, fulfilling lives.

I think there's too much emphasis on optimizing shit when you're too young to make that decision with any sort of wisdom, and there really isn't an optimal solution because sometimes it makes sense to change course depending on your goals and the nature of the current markets.

I went to business school where I basically studied intense finance, only to find that I didn't like pure finance in the real world. I've since changed course and have been much happier for it, and I've actually been able to expand my skills in the meantime. Changing courses can be great if it means you become a double or even triple threat.

This is what I think is the best plan for me at this moment. Currently, I am pursuing a masters in mathematics to allow myself to have some flexibility in my decisions. I also know that there is nothing wrong with changing careers at an older age, and I am not intimidated to do it if I know it ends up being a better choice for me. These are all valid points.

[Cavernio]

You don't even have a career yet to change.
There's an infinite amount of choice in knowing what to do, and perhaps it would help to break it own. Seems like right now the first question you should figure out the answer to is if you want to get a master's in math. What purpose does it serve, why would you like it, why wouldn't like it, do you like it in and of itself?
Second thing you need to figure out is why your motivation is missing. If you switched to one of these other career paths, do you figure you'd get some drive back? What if you figure you'll never be as gung-ho,about any career path, as you used to be? Is motivation necessary for your enjoyment of a career, and is self-drive more important for one career over another? It seems that no matter what path you're considering choosing, financially you'll be set.