Confidence and Success > How to Build Confidence
I feel almost as if life is leaving me behind
Quetzalcoatl:
Hey, first post here in a while.
I'm not even sure where to begin here honestly. Been feeling kinda down lately. I think its mainly stemming from not knowing what to do with myself or life in general.
Back when I was a kid I knew exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up, an astronaut. I worked hard throughout school, graduated with a 3.7 unweighted GPA and got accepted to FIT (just south of Cape Canaveral) and double majored in Astrophysics and Military Sciences to acheive my goal.
Unfortunately, halfway through my freshman year the funding to NASA was cut, killing the manned space flight program. Granted I had never been the happiest guy, but this had pretty much crushed me. What I had wanted since I was 5, what I had worked so hard for to the point of not really having a social life in high school to focus on my studies for no longer existed.
I ended up flunking out. I was full on depressed. I went on, unemployed for a year and got a job at a local grocery store where I still work as a part time bakery clerk.
I know I should be doing something in my life, but I haven't the faintest idea what. I've entertained several ideas, architecture, computer programming, etc. but idk, nothing has stirred enough motivation in me to do anything. I know that thought without action is nothing more than mental masturbation, but I can't think of an action to take.
I don't want to take a path that I'll end up regretting, been there, done that, got the $10k student loan debt to prove it, but I know I can't let time go by without moving on with it much longer. I can't live with my parents forever on a job that barely pays for my gas and auto insurance.
I know I must do something, but do not know what.
TheSlyBear:
Finish your degree. Surely there are more jobs than astronaut for people with an astrophysics background.
chgobuzzbald:
First stop letting your thoughts run to being some sort of victim of budget cuts, life etc. Never a successful path to follow no matter how challenging one's life becomes. Train yourself to intercept those thoughts when they emerge. A book I just started called The Key is all about that.
Start researching careers from a to z. Look to what makes you happy and is fun for you in life and then see how to work backwards from that to see if there is a job connected to that somehow. NASA still needs people to control the satellites and probes they send out. I recall that MOhawk guy who was in the news a couple years ago for helping control the Mars Rover. He found fun in his job and some fame for a bit with his mohawk I recall.
Or look to the private sector with the companies that are doing for profit launches and planning for private space travel. I bet you can still use your training in the years ahead. NASA will be eclipsed by the priavte sector very soon but you dont have to be a victim of that unless you allow that to happen. The area of domestic Drones ia about to explode in 2015 when they become fully legal to fly, I bet there will be careers there and have heard of a couple degree programs popping up just for Drone flight.
Keep the head smooth as well and be confident. Thats all anyone really looks for is people with confidence in themselves. That will carry you far in all areas of your life. But if people sense a Victim Thinker they will run away from that person. You are not that person.
benlen:
--- Quote from: TheSlyBear on May 20, 2013, 10:23:46 PM ---Finish your degree. Surely there are more jobs than astronaut for people with an astrophysics background.
--- End quote ---
+1 I think it's BS that we're making cuts to our space program, especially the way we're treating our Earth with climate change––we'll need more astronauts to explore suitable planets to live on in the near future.
I say go back into the space program, and get back into NASA in SOME capacity at least.
Think of it this way. I'm terrible at maths and sciences but I love the idea of space travel, but I'll never get even the chance to go because of my lack of skills. You have that chance!
Laser Man:
I agree with the others - finish your degree and look for a career (not a job) in the astrophysics field. You may have to take some detours along the way, but you can find a career that suits your dreams. While NASA may be facing budget cuts, there are other avenues for bright and talented people. You may not get to be an astronaut, but there are many other paths that can give you fulfillment. In the words of Winston Churchill, never give up!
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