Post 2: Roadtrip Nation

What I liked about Roadtrip Nation was the desire of the people who were going on the trip to find out what they wanted to do. Even though they didn't really know what they wanted to do with the rest of their lives, they all had a passion that they loved, and I believe that everybody does. I believe that if you work hard enough at what you love to do, and you have that burning passion to achieve, then you will. Just like the people in the interviews who were pressured into "the noise" to have a "normal" profession. Also, there were some things that I disliked about the documentary. Even though you might have a passion for something, that doesn't mean that you should throw away thousands of dollars you spent on education to go pursue something that might not work out. I think that it's really important to find something that you could at least fall back on if what you really what to do falls through. The moments that really stuck with me were are the interviews of people who truly followed their dreams and became successful, despite what everyone was telling them. Wanda Sykes said that her parents thought that she was crazy when she pursued a career in comedy, and now she is very successful. Ira Glass's parents wanted him to go to med school, but he kept his options open and that ended up working out for him. I also think that it is really important to take as many classes that aren't in the same subject matter as you possibly can. He didn't restrict himself to one thing and when he broadened his horizons, he found something that he really liked to do. Also, some people have the courage to go out on their own and just discover themselves like Ross Rebagliati did. He really went out on a limb and was going through a lot of stuff and came out of it a successful professional athlete. He was lucky, and unfortunately, not a lot of people are. Pam Garber, owner of the Philadelphia 76ers is a big advocator of persisting in achieving your dream. If you work hard enough, then you will achieve what you want to in life. There has to be passion there for this dream to work out, though. Also, Dr. Linda Li stated that if you change your mind and don't want to do what you were doing anymore, you can always change your mind and do something else. That is always encouraging that you aren't locked into one decision that may cause you to have a miserable job and consequently a miserable life. It is also encouraging that when people choose and find what they truly want to do, the know that that is it. Scott Maceachern stated that what he was doing felt so good, that he knew that that is what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. That makes me think that once I'm doing what I want to do, I will know for sure. The "noise" that I am hearing is coming from peers, parents, and strangers I just meet. They are all asking me what my major is and what I want to do with the rest of my life. I'm not positive about what I want to do yet, but I am starting to figure it out. The "noise" is definitely coming from all angles. I think the main way that I can learn about careers other than the ones I'm aware of now is by just exposing myself to all the classes and opportunities that JMU has to offer. I am definitely going to take a variety of classes just to keep my options open. I don't want to lock myself into one idea that that is what I am going to do. I am going to explore and see what seems most interesting to me before I lock myself into anything that I potentially do not want to do.