I attended a career program launch yesterday, and two speakers told of two very different stories on how they got to where they are right now. One of them was obviously ambitious and driven, and that’s how he got where he is. The other one’s story was rather amazing — it’s like the opportunities just presented themselves to him, and he simply followed where they led.

Of course I end up wondering where I want to be.

It’s funny how, among my friends, I seem to be the one “with a direction.” In truth, I only know where I don’t want to be. I don’t have a specific goal. I relate a lot to the first speaker — we want to be the best in what we do. But the question is, what do I want to do?

This brings up a lot of what-ifs, stirred up when I see how my peers have turned out. What if I became a hardcore programmer? What if I went on to take up higher learning? What if I took the freelancer path? Or what if I ventured into the unknown and did something like marketing instead? I know thinking what-ifs is useless, but I can’t help it.

Right now, I feel like my personality is like the first speaker’s, driven and opinionated. On the other hand, I feel that what I’m doing right now is much like what the second speaker did, just enjoying what I do at the moment and not thinking about tomorrow.

I know I need to get my head straight and decide my future. I realize that skills alone won’t get me to the top, wherever that is (and that scares me). If I really want to get somewhere, I need to start working on it now. It’s a long road ahead.