Turning What You Love into What You Do: A College Senior’s Approach

Erin Kelly

Turning What You Love into What You Do
By Patrick O’Connor

A three-step process can be followed to turn what you love into what you do. The process includes the steps: Examine, Explore and Envision. The process is most likely needed at three critical times in the career path: Initial, Transitional and Encore. This process can be used as often as needed.

This blog segment chronicles the three-step process a college senior (initial) has taken to turn what she loves into what she does. She is an excellent example of the Road Less Traveled (RLT) Mindset, which basically means to take control of your future. 

Erin Kelly is planning to graduate from Kent State University in spring 2022. She is majoring in biology with plans for a career in the medical field. She also minors in painting, loves to play piano, works as a lifeguard/water safety instructor, paints murals for non-profit organizations and volunteers at a suicide crisis line. Each day is a busy one! 

Early in her college experience, she referred to herself as a “clueless freshman.” She’s come a long way from that place. She loves everything about being a senior, especially since her junior year was Covid-interrupted. She loves time with friends and sees herself maturing in managing her lifestyle (grocery shopping, paying bills, part-time lifeguard work, etc.). Some students refer to this as “adulting.” She now refers to herself as a “proudly broke” college senior. 

Erin displays a very disciplined lifestyle, beginning with a strong academic background in the sciences. She has many interests that can be combined into additional career opportunities. She followed the three-step process below to focus her energy and plan her future. 

Examine – Although Erin aspires for a career in the medical field, she has developed a broader understanding of what she values. She loves her major and her work but also loves her other interests in art, music and volunteering. 

Like many students, she first saw the “face of the industry,” which in this case, is a medical doctor. Over time, a deeper examination widened her lens and she realized there are many different career paths in health care. Estimates are there are nine medical workers employed for each surgeon. At this point, her goal is to be a physician’s associate (aka physician’s assistant) who works with surgeons during surgery. 

Explore – Erin visited websites of professional associations to learn more about the industry, the career field and entry requirements to become a physician’s associate. She learned she needed a few more content science courses, so she took them in summer 2021. 

Envision – Erin sees her first year or two from college as time to gain work experience, confirm her interests and explore others. She calls this her “gap years.” She wants this time/experience to help her chart future graduate school plans in medicine. She wants a future balanced between her professional and personal interests.

Erin’s insight: from “Clueless Freshman” to “Proudly Broke Senior”
I’ve kept a journal during my time at KSU. I’ve been reviewing it lately and feel fulfilled at where I am now. It feels like it was just yesterday I was too uncertain to even identify myself as a “clueless freshman.” When I first started college, I knew what I wanted deep down, but was too afraid to reach out and grab it. I was afraid to deviate from the path I thought I wanted, even though the path had yet to evolve. I thought I was only allowed to pick one thing to contribute to my professional life and wouldn’t have enough personal time for anything else. Plus, I still want to have fun in my younger years. Recently, I have truly grasped these concepts. 

I have had many passions throughout my life that place no precedence over each other. Rather, they all contribute to strengthening my performance in each of them. As I maneuvered through my college experience, I learned about the Road Less Traveled mindset and realized I can attain all my passions for the life I wish to live. I have learned that no one deserves anything less than a life they are truly passionate about. Experiencing loss, life changes at the turn of a minute, and the stress of juggling “adulting” while maintaining good grades are all tough lessons. 

From “clueless freshman” to “proudly broke senior” I am now trying my best to reflect accordingly and presume the greatest amount of growth I can from here on out. I’m not sure what my future will bring, but I feel prepared and confident to tackle it. Whatever it is, I will be thrilled and thankful for it. I just intend to adjust, retool and reboot as necessary.

Best wishes, Erin, for a future filled with all your dreams and doing what you love!

The next blog segment will cover college students who attend college without finishing and find a way to turn what they love into what they do.

Author’s note: I have helped teach a swing dance class at KSU. It was in this class where Erin and I first met. In addition to all her other talents, she is a very good dancer!