When it comes to careers, I have always had something of a one-track mind. As a child, I had a huge fixation with my future, planning out books I would write, laws I would change, and picking future homes out of Architectural Digest. My ideal city changed from San Francisco to Vancouver to Munich to Washington, D.C. Looking ahead to the millions of things I wanted to do was one way to avoid thinking about the task at hand—namely, middle school.

Since then, I’ve become much more rational. I know that I have to get an undergraduate degree, possibly go to graduate school, and, of course, get a job. I know that it takes years, decades even, to reach the top of any industry, and I want to get started as soon as possible.

It shocked me, then, when I found out that many Scripps seniors apply for Fulbright scholarships and Teach for America. I understood future teachers interested in these areas, but the sheer amount of applicants baffled me. Why would you spend a few years doing something completely unrelated to both your major and your career goals, especially when you’re young and, most likely, broke from college?

A couple of days ago, I was talking to a friend of mine teaching English in South Korea. I asked her if she planned on going to graduate school after finishing her tenure abroad, and she answered that it was likely. For what? I asked. She wasn’t completely sure, but the possibilities she gave me had nothing to do with teaching or English. I was quiet for a moment, and then asked, in the most polite way possible, “Why did you go to Korea?”

There were a lot of reasons, she said. Although she hadn’t studied it, teaching was something she had always had an interest in, and she wanted to try it. She wanted to learn not only how to live abroad, but to live alone and independent. Before moving forward with her career, she wanted to mature as a person and experiment in another career track.

I had asked a few people before about the allure of Fulbrights and other, similar programs, but this was by far the clearest, most understandable answer I got. We forget sometimes that learning isn’t just in the classroom or on the job, and that every experience can contribute personal growth. As a rising junior, I still don’t know if I’ll end up applying for a Fulbright scholarship, but I can finally say that I understand the merit of the experience, even if it puts a career on hold.

When I got an internship in early March, a lot of things ran through my head. The first, of course, was a sigh of relief—my search had been so joyless that just hearing the word “internship” would launch a fit of anger and self-loathing. After that was the realization that my resume would get a shiny new addition to go with its recent makeover, and then the big epiphany hit.

I finally had a reason to buy professional clothes! Never mind that I’d be working my internship from my dorm room—the company encouraged me to visit their headquarters, and I needed to be prepared not only for that, but for future interviews. Jeans and my favorite top were not going to cut it anymore, I told my parents. It was time for my wardrobe to mature.

Armed with a stack of coupons and a rewards card, my family went on a road trip and hit the Banana Republic outlet store. I walked away with just enough “big girl clothes” to survive a few days in a modern workplace—one two-piece suit, a matching pencil skirt, four blouses, and a simple sweater. With no car at college and few quality stores in my hometown, I don’t shop a lot, and this was, by far, the most successful clothes-shopping trip I’ve had since I left Seoul in August. While I won’t pretend to be a professional clothes expert, let me give a few pieces of advice after my trip:

1. Andre Agassi once said that image is everything. It’s certainly not everything, but there’s a lot, whether you realize it or not, that what you’re wearing says about you. A well-tailored suit in blue, black, beige, or grey with a nice blouse projects professionalism and poise. A bright blue shorts-suit with nothing underneath (credit to Go Fug Yourself) would probably not have the same effect. Dressing like this (again, credit to GFY) could scare off any potential employers. You get the idea.

2. Fit, fit, fit! As a vertically challenged member of society, I’m constantly sending clothes in for alterations. I’ve never bought a pair of jeans that weren’t too long for my legs, and every special occasion dress I’ve bought had to have at least five inches chopped off the bottom. No matter what body type you have, though, it’s important that your workplace clothes fit you well. Don’t buy something that doesn’t fit, and if it’s all you can find, make sure to find a seamstress. Don’t settle for those slacks you’re swimming in or the blazer that’s crushing your lungs.

3. Make sure any skirt is long enough—knee-length or maybe an inch above.

4. Last, but not least, clothes are fun. Clothes express who you are. Clothes can be empowering. There are rules to follow in the professional world, but it’s important, in my opinion, to let your personality shine through. How you answer questions and express yourself verbally are much more important to most employers, but you’re guaranteed to catch an interviewer’s eyes instantly if you’re wearing your suit, rather than the suit wearing you. Do you want to be one of the dozens of applicants in a black suit with a white button-up, or do you want to rock a blue suit with a metallic grey blouse? If you love what you’re wearing, it shows, and that positivity will certainly carry over to your interview. Don’t be a flight attendant—be you.

(credit to hendenger.tumblr.com.)

A few weeks ago, Julia shared her experiences as a German Studies major. I read the entry, nodding my head the whole time—as you can imagine, my experience is quite similar.

Before I started college, I told my grandmother that I would major, most likely, in German and Korean. One of the main reasons I’d applied to Scripps was their Foreign Language major program, in which I could major in two or three languages while writing only one senior thesis, and I planned to take advantage of it. My grandmother, being the child of German immigrants, never expressed anything but enthusiasm for my interest in their language. My decision to study Korean, however, confused her completely. She asked me, bluntly, “Why aren’t you taking Chinese?” as if studying Korean were as obscure and useless as studying Assyrian runes. I went from a straight A student and high school graduate to a disappointment of a grandchild with one decision.

The responses of strangers to my major hasn’t been nearly as soul-crushing, but I’ve confused almost everyone in my path. That I’m studying German, a “normal” European language, is an afterthought. “Korean,” people say, “That’s an interesting choice.” “Interesting”, as we’re all aware, is a wonderful word that can mean exactly what we think it means, or it can be a very politically correct way of calling something bad or weird. Considering most colleges don’t even offer Korean language classes, I can’t fault them for that comment. It’s the next one that gets me—“So, what do you want to do?”

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This past Sunday, I had the pleasure of attending Sports Industry Day, a three-hour panel hosted by the Claremont Sports Connection, which included a number of industry veterans. There were broadcasters, journalists, PR representatives, sales directors, and even a Major League Baseball general manager. To say that I was excited for this event doesn’t even begin to cover it—let me tell you, it was completely worth it.

Before I go into more detail, I just want to thank the CSC—again—for putting this event together. Although Claremont is close to one of the biggest sports markets in the country, there’s very little fanfare about the sports world on campus, and hopefully this is a start to a much bigger community here.

One of the things I was most excited about was getting to wear my business clothes for the first time. It was hot, so I opted for a pencil skirt and blouse, and left for the conference feeling incredibly professional and confident. I was finally going to look my age!

The first panel was made up of two veteran broadcasters, as well as one graduating senior from Pepperdine University majoring in Sports Broadcasting. Over the years I’ve had wavering interest in broadcasting—I went from thinking it was the dream job to a nightmare, and then back again. Listening to the panel allowed me to come to an ultimate conclusion: I realized I don’t want it, and the only reason I was ever interested in the first place was because of the lack of women in the field. I had always wanted to be the first respected female sportscaster, one that wouldn’t be relegated to sideline reporting, but I didn’t have any actual interest in the field itself. I didn’t have the passion, outgoing nature, or the family connections of any of the panelists. Frankly, my future doesn’t lie in broadcasting.

After this panel, I began to worry—would each successive panel crush my dreams, one by one? Would I leave the conference thinking that I wasn’t qualified for anything? Thankfully, the next panel covered print journalism and PR, much more realistic fields for someone as fond of the written word as I. This panel left me feeling much more optimistic. Despite the decline of newspapers, the media world, they told us, was larger than ever—and blogging is a great way to get your foot in the door. I had the chance to speak with one of the panelists in more detail during the next break, and got more good news: the fact that I didn’t have a journalism major wouldn’t hinder me, should I choose the field.

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Do you remember the first job you wanted? The one you decided, on Career Day in Kindergarten, was perfect for you?

I do. The first time I heard “Genie in a Bottle”, I knew that I wanted to be a singer. Christina Aguilera was, simply put, my hero, and after I went to her concert I knew exactly what I wanted in life. In spite of my stage fright (My first performance was “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer” and I made everyone in the audience cover their faces with pillows) I took voice lessons for six years, choir for the years after that, and lessons again in college. I eventually gave up on becoming the world’s next pop sensation, but it’ll probably always be a pipe dream.

I had other, more short-lived dreams—becoming a Pokemon trainer, for example—but for years and years, I decided my ultimate career dream was to be a writer. I wanted to write novels, television shows, movies—anything and everything. It was only years later that I realized I had a serious roadblock in the way, namely, that I didn’t have any ideas of my own. I either wanted to write spin-offs of already existing stories, or I wanted to write about my own life. There are plenty of writers that have made careers off of other ideas—Gregory Maguire comes to mind—but it’s not the basis for a steady career. I could go into essay writing, but it’s highly unlikely that would pay the bills.

After this epiphany, I decided journalism was the way to go. If I became a journalist, I didn’t need to make my own stories, I just needed to write the stories of others in an extremely compelling manner. If I went into sports writing, I could write about the thing that interested me the most, and maybe write some editorials as well (I have the occasionally unfortunate trait of being very opinionated).

This brings me to my current career issue. I love writing—that’s one of the many reasons why I wanted to write for this blog. I’m very particular about what exactly I like to write, but I do love writing. Is it enough in the sports industry, though? No matter how much sportswriters criticize or lobby for change, it seems like few people in positions of power listen. I’ve witnessed this for years. To make things happen, I need to be in the front offices, not on the sidelines.

I won’t be writing in that place, though—at least, not in the same way. It also requires skills that I need to develop, such as charisma and persuasion. Do I want to try for an administrative position, or stick with something I know, that sometimes seems powerless?

Although I’ve begun to lean very clearly in one direction—administrative work—it’s still something that keeps me conflicted.