"I have no idea what I'm doing."
-Alayna Kennedy, on a daily basis
Going to college shakes up your world. Leaving home, living on your own for the first time, and beginning to forge your own trail in the thicket of life can be incredibly intimidating. Because of this, college students can often feel a crippling sense of doubt. We wonder whether or not we deserve to be here, whether or not we're good enough, and in order to squash that niggling fear, we work harder, sleep less, and neglect to reflect on the actual basis of our insecurity - our lack of a clear vision for our lives.
We all so desperately want to be good enough, smart enough, talented enough for that internship or relationship or some other line on our resume, but most of us do not spend any time actually crafting a set of goals that can eventually bring us to what we want. Even though we may not have the hard skills to succeed in a job or a class, we feel that we, in some way, deserve success. What we need to realize is ultimately, desire is not enough.
Like many of our generation, I often feel adrift, as if I'm wandering about the most formative years of my life with no driving purpose or end goal. At times, I may think that all I have is desire - the passion to do good in this world, to be successful and create a legacy to leave behind me. Tempting though it may be to believe the contrary, I have come to understand that desire is not enough. It is not enough to ensure a fulfilling life, to provide anyone with success or distinction. Desire does not make you any worthier of recognition than another.
Many of my fellow twenty-somethings seem to feel that desire gives an individual a measure of deservingness - by simply wanting something badly enough, we think that we deserve to have it. The idea that we can get what we want if we only wish for it hard enough is the stuff of children's fairytales, yet it's a fantasy that many continue to believe.
Vision, not desire, is the true hallmark of success - to know what you want and understand why you're doing it, to dedicate your life to a vision that you care deeply about, and to deliberately and strategically work towards that goal. True, desire is a necessary first step to having a vision, but being able to spell out a clear and compelling reality to work towards is so much more essential to success than simple want. Without a vision, you have no way of communicating your desire to others; no way to inspire others to join you in the realization of your vision.
While everyone, including myself, might sometimes feel as if all we have is desire, that is not true. Not for anyone. Each and every one of us has something to offer the world. You know something, or have some skill, that no one else in the world has, and with time and hard work, you can become magnificent. However, you cannot fall for the trap of thinking that mere desire will turn that skill into a legacy of success worth remembering. In order to mold the world in a positive way, you have to work, and most importantly do something. Having a dream is an awesome place to start. Now go do something about it.