Tag Archives: decision making

Channeling My Inner Cheryl Strayed

Posted on by
Reply

Over fall break, I swear I heard the phrase a hundred times: “Wow, you’re a senior? Where did the time go?” And part of me echoes this sentiment. I can hardly believe that I’m so close to the end of my time at Scripps. But when I think back to how much I’ve matured since my Senior year of high school, it’s evident to me that the only way to describe this time isn’t in terms of how long or short it has felt, but how rich it has been in terms of personal growth.

Four years ago, I was freaking out. I was worrying about finishing eight applications, graduating, and leaving my small home town. Like all high school seniors, I was faced with some major uncertainty, and some major decisions. And for the first time in my life, I realized how scary decisions can be.

When I received my acceptance letters, my anxiety around decision making only got worse Every time I started to get close to picking one college, I would think about all that I would be giving up by making that decision. Even when I decided on Scripps, I was plagued by thoughts about a hypothetical future life at Colorado College. By picking Scripps, would I just be giving up weekend skiing trips? Or would I be giving up much more- like a more like-minded community of students?

It had never occurred to me before that in order to make a decision, you have to commit, and that in order to make commitments you have to shut one door- or more. This prospect was terrifying to me. I was totally equipped to make a decision, yet I was plagued by inaction. I had done all my research, I made list after list of pros and cons, I felt certain that I had explored all my options, and still feel I paralyzed about which to pick.

Thinking back to this time, it’s pretty evident to me how much I’ve changed. Today, I find myself faced with many similar decisions, and a whole lot of uncertainty. The major difference is that I’m not freaking out.

So what changed? Part of the difference is simply practice. Four years ago, I’d never made a major decision in my life. At this point, I’ve made a few. However, there was one moment for me when four years ago, things really clicked. As I was making my college decision, I read a piece of writing that gave me the gift of acceptance, entirely changing my outlook on decision-making.

I was still trying to decide on a school when I read Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed (better known for her memoir, Wild). Tiny Beautiful Things is a compilation of Cheryl Strayed’s reflections on life, written in the form of advice letters. It was one particular letter that has stuck with me ever since.

The letter is titled “The Ghost-Ship that Didn’t Carry Us.” In it, Cheryl Strayed writes to a man trying to make an irrevocable life decision, and offers the following wisdom:

“you want clarity about which course to take, but perhaps you should let that go… there will likely be no clarity, at least at the outset; there will only be the choice you make and the sure knowledge that either one will contain some loss… I’ll never know and neither will you of the life you don’t choose. We’ll only know that whatever that sister life was, it was important and beautiful and not ours. It was the ghost ship that didn’t carry us. There’s nothing to do but salute it from the shore.”

The idea that I could make a decision without knowing for sure whether it was the “right” decision was earth-shattering for me. I’d never considered that you could simply make a decision, almost arbitrarily, and never look back.

Ever since I read that letter, , I’ve let the “ghost-ship” philosophy guide most of my decisions.

After I spend some time writing out the pros and cons, after I explore my options, I simply make a commitment. I let go of the idea that the “correct” decision exists somewhere out there. I accept that by making a decision, I may be closing doors.

I’m not exaggerating when I say that I have never since felt anxiety about making a commitment. It no longer bothers me that I may be missing out on some things in life. Because here’s the thing- I’ve discovered that whenever I have fully committed to a decision, while I have closed some doors, I’ve opened others.

As I get closer to life after Scripps, I’m definitely a little nervous. But I’m mostly excited. Many options have been granted to me, and while I can’t pick all of them, I have the privilege of picking one.

Mucho Character

Posted on by
Reply

My mother’s mentality is tough. Growing up, I have been taught that every hardship builds some sort of character. My scraped knees, rainy birthdays, failed spelling bees and crushed crushes were always remedied by my mother’s aggressive assertions that I was fine and these downfalls would help me grow as a human. As a sensitive and emotional child, this was hard to react to. I know that my mom is always right, but I still had a natural desire to pout and be bummed about my petty shortcomings. Sometimes we all have the urge to just throw a tantrum! My mother conditioned me to not cry at every U9 rec soccer game, because: 1. Its recreational children’s soccer and 2. Losing is more useful than winning. I have always had a competitive soul, so I couldn’t comprehend why my mother thought this.  I later learned that my mothers harsh philosophy is valid, and is a useful application.

At the beginning of the semester, I decided that I would I could take on the challenge of Calculus despite my broken relationship with math. I didn’t even place into Calculus but I was so advent on getting my math requirement out of the way, and did not like the idea of taking a lower level class. My advisor and parents both advised me to just take a lower level math class, but I was arrogant. I took Calculus in high school; this should be fine! I was much too confident striding into the class, and became overwhelmed from the get-go. I ended up dropping the class, which upset me to know that I failed. After initial sadness and frustration, my mother’s words came to mind as usual. My downfall has taught to listen to the people around me (who know what they are talking about!) and that these things happen… You just have to move forward.

With this mantra inscribed in the side of my thoughts, I have become stronger from my disappointments in life. I offer that you too can take away lessons from all the wrinkles in life, especially in this often disappointing career world. Buck up, and move forward with strength from your mistakes!

Pick A Card, Any Card!

Posted on by
Reply

Random is definitely not a word I’d associate with the process of choosing my classes and major. Recently, planning my academics and extra-curriculars while trying to anticipate every outcome left me feeling dazed and confused. I overthought everything so much I didn’t know what to do. I went in for a counseling appointment at CP&R needing an outside perspective to lift me out of my fog of paralysis.

Enter Valinda and her magical Values Card Sort. Here’s how it works: you simply sort a stack of cards, each with a different value—an aspect of a potential professional role, in order of importance to you. My top ten values (in no particular order) are the following:

  • Structure and predictability
  • Knowledge
  • Diversity
  • Location
  • Advancement
  • Precision work
  • Affiliation
  • Exercise competence
  • Time freedom
  • Aesthetics

Because I’m a visual learner, ranking and rearranging the cards really helped me articulate my big picture end goals. Having this list in front of me enabled me to analyze exactly what I found so attractive about different career options. It also enabled me to compare them. Allow me to digress…

 When I was in elementary school, I was a huge dork. I loved books so much (Boxcar Children, Magic Treehouse, A Series of Unfortunate Events, and Artemis Fowl were my favorites) that I would stay inside during recess to read. So it’s probably no surprise that my childhood dream was to become a librarian.

index

When I was in second grade, I got in trouble with Ms. Labagh for hiding a book in my lap and reading under my desk during “Reading” class. | Source: MagicTreehouseBooks.net

As I’ve gotten older, that little dream has been set aside by different experiences that led my decision to major in Economics-Accounting and minor in Art History. Since coming to college, I’ve been on track to become an accountant in the art world. It seemed to be the most logical marriage between my major and minor; my practical, orderly personality and my desire for unbounded learning and aesthetic stimulation…that, and I have to be financially independent after graduation.

So to return to my list of values above: being a librarian would satisfy most of the values I chose. But there probably wouldn’t be a lot of opportunities for advancement or a notable affiliation unless I worked at a big library. Being an accountant would satisfy a lot of these values too, but there wouldn’t be a lot of time freedom or aesthetic appreciation. Working my way through this list has helped me structure my analysis when considering other possibilities.

Last week, while researching internship opportunities to post on the NIC database as part of my responsibilities at CP&R, I realized there are so other many roles I’d love to try that meet my values. I could be a collections manager and be in charge of a museum’s art collection (a librarian for art!); or work in institutional development and help non-profits like Scripps and LACMA grow; or become an art appraiser and research artwork and market trends to value works of art. Reading through the job descriptions and comparing them with my values helped me picture myself in these roles.

In the words of AnnE, a fellow career consultant: “[Researching internships] is dangerous. I’ve changed my career path four times in the past hour!”

The revelation of there being so many potentially good fits was kind of scary. I’ve told myself and so many other people for so long that I want to be an accountant in the art world, that to let go of that goal at this moment isn’t something I can embrace just yet. I’m not ready to erase that identifier or change my major, mainly because I have no work experience in accounting (yet!). I don’t know what it’s really like. I hope my accounting interview next week goes well, but realizing that there are so many avenues beyond is a big reassurance too.

Trying On (Metaphorical) Hats

Posted on by
1

Obligatory tourist picture with Chris Burden’s “Urban Light” sculpture during a field trip to LACMA.

Hello everyone! My name is Jasmine. I am a sophomore here at Scripps, and I’m very excited to write for this blog. Since this is my first post, I’ll provide some information about where I am on my academic and career path. I am drawn to a career in business, but I’ve also loved art history ever since I took the AP course in high school. I intend to declare my studies in some combination of economics, accounting, and/or art history—how exactly this will pan out remains to be seen. I just spent a formative summer studying accounting at CMC and interning at the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery (click here for my post-internship reflection).

When I started at the Gallery, I wasn’t sure how to answer the question, “What are your goals and interests?” Trying on different “hats” when it comes to major decisions has definitely worked well for me in the past, so studying art law and going to Geneva became my go-to responses for when others inevitably asked about my interests. My thought process wasn’t particularly enlightened—the field of copyright and reproduction law sounded important enough to satisfy my mother, and Geneva was the one city I could think of where my studies in French, art history, and economics would all be applicable.

But having a specific, consistent answer at the ready allowed me to:

  1. Present myself as thoughtful and driven to potentially significant figures when networking,
  2. Practice articulating my reasons for these decisions, and
  3. Gather information about prospective paths from others’ responses.

Specifying my interests also made it easier for my immediate supervisors to identify valuable experiences or projects for me to tackle. When I told the other interns that I was thinking about Geneva, they volunteered relevant information not only about that country, but also Italy, France, and London. After actually talking to an art lawyer and learning that Geneva is one of the most expensive places to study abroad, I realized these probably weren’t the right choices for me. My two current paths of interest are now studying abroad in London and pursuing a career in art appraisal, goals I believe will tie together my interests in economics, accounting, and art history.

My posts will focus on the important decisions I make this year regarding study abroad, choosing a major, and searching for an internship. I will also write about working on campus as a tour guide in Admissions and a career consultant with CP&R. I hope to serve as a valuable resource relevant to many in the Scripps community. If you have a question or concern you’d like me to address, please leave a reply in the comments!