The excitement of moving to Austria for a social media internship and living my dream of learning to snowboard while pursuing a career in fashion and social media turned out to be far from what I expected. After months of working in an office, writing about clothes and sports equipment that added to the pile of waste in the world, and attending artificial events with snow produced out of necessity, I found myself unfulfilled and unhappy.
Despite my plans to move back to the Netherlands and work in fashion and social media, I realized that what I thought was my passion wasn’t really for me. I missed researching and making a difference, and I longed for a more meaningful career. As a surfer girl, I imagined myself working remotely from a beach and surfing every day, but in reality, I missed Amsterdam, a city that thrives on diversity and cold-water surfing.
It’s amazing how six months can change one’s perspective on life. I had envisioned working for a cool brand, but I realised that being cool wasn’t for me. I did not thrive working in a field where the only goal is to be considered as cool and fashionable. The biggest concern is not to have the latest equipment or the newest pair of Jeans. Instead, I wanted to work for a smaller company where I could make a real impact on the world’s bigger problems. Even worse, I was longing to research and base my decisions on facts rather than personal preferences.
The idea of telling my friends and family that I wasn’t happy in my job and wanted to pursue a different career path seemed daunting, but knowing what was not meant for me made the decision easier. Sometimes, it’s crucial to recognize that a particular career or lifestyle doesn’t fit us, and it’s okay to change directions. The change of direction can essentially lead towards an unexpected but salient turn to achieve happiness.
In conclusion, discovering what’s not meant for you can be a powerful thing. Even though I was scared of the thought that I just wasted 6 months of my precious time – there is something beautiful in a so-called wrong turn. Not knowing what I want is a direction that I can follow. A path can be shaped by avoiding options and adding on new perpectives. Even if your entire career was building up towards one goal, it’s okay to change the direction once the goal is reached and does not offer the expected fulfilment.