Passion not socially respected

[Footballman]

Hi there,

I'm a university student studying Economics(at one of the World's top ten Uni's). I hate Economics - I've read a lot of blogs on this site and come to the conclusion that I would rather be stacking shelves in the local grocery store. Alternatively I enjoy soccer and would like to coach it, or be involved with it. My question is this though - most people would consider this a 'hobby' rather than a 'job'. Were I to look for a job in this field I know it would make me happier even though the money would be a lot less...but I'm sure I could find other ways to make some money.

Alternatively I could get a degree in something 'fairly' interesting and get a professional job, earn decent money, have a family etc, live 'comfortably'.

What's your thoughts?
Thanks

[Remiel]

1. Don't go into economics if you hate it. Why do something you hate doing?

2. In addition to what do you like to do, who are you? What are you talents? What do you want to share with the world? If you could do 1 thing and know you would be successful, what would you create?

[Plato]

What would you do if you were a hero?

What would you do if you were a villain?

What would you do if you were a person who doesn't know who or what they are?

[Orecle]

I dont know about the US, but here in England you can become a football coach on an average of £20000 a year and it could rise depending on how hard you are willing to work. I expect the same to be in spain and Italy where football is very popular. I have a couple friends who coach under 15s for Tottenham Hotspurs. You can get your badges and who knows get into a semi-pro and then a prem team. In every field, there are people at the top and people at the bottom. There are road sweepers and the people that administrate and own the company. The same with shelf stacking. Billionaire owner of Clothing Empire Phillip Green started as a shelf stacker in 1 of the chains he now runs

[Footballman]

Orecle - I'm in the UK, I just called it soccer to avoid misunderstanding. I didn't know they could really earn that much. You say hard work is required -in one sense I don't think anything to do with football is hard work but I know what you mean.

Plato - I'm not sure what you mean by hero?..but ideally I would be a professional footballer(soccer) and be playing for one of the world's top teams setting the place alight with my dazzling skills.
If I was a villain, I would probably never pursue things that captivated my heart in any walk of life. Maybe I would just be a 'regular-guy' without ambition.
If I was a person who didn't know who or what I am, I would just follow the status quo - maybe take other people's advice and not listen to my own thoughts to guide me - just follow the advice. On second thoughts maybe I would find out who I am...maybe thats where I'm at now.

Remiel - Intellectually, Economics is a great subject to take on, lots of opportunity etc...but somewhere inside me, maybe spiritually or something, I have resistance to it. Needless to say I used to do everything from an intellectual viewpoint, and it's only recently I've allowed the emotional person inside me to come out a little.
What are my talents? Hmm, I'm honest, loyal, usually dependable. I'm empathetic to an extent. I'm intellectually curious, yet discerning. I'm not as sociable as I'd like to be, but I think this would change were I to stop doing things I hate.
If I could create one thing..hmm..I'm not sure. Were I to be a football(soccer) coach, I would create my own team, for all age groups up to say 16 and I would like to develop their talents, so some of the youngsters can make it to a professional level.

[Eric Roosevelt]

At least we know one thing for sure, namely that you don't want to do economics. If you hate that subject, then that's a path you probably want to get away from as soon as possible. Start looking for alternative paths.

Start asking yourself questions about what you want to do with your life. Don't give definitive answers, ask questions. Eventually you will have to start making decisions, but an important first step is to realize that you have many options available to you.

For instance, what are your interests apart from soccer? Apart from economics and soccer, what would you like to do?

How good are you at soccer? Do you think you could get good enough to get in a top team, and make a living out of it? Be honest - don't overestimate your chances of success, but don't underestimate them either. Strive for accuracy.

Once you know what your strengths and weaknesses are you'll be able to leverage them much better, and make effective decisions.

But most of all try to accept the level you're at right now, and make the most of it. Student life is supposed to be fun.

[Orecle]

Football coach jobs & career guide : thefitmap.co.uk

I Want Your Job: Football coach - Getting a Job, Career Planning - The Independent

[Inscient]

The title that you have chosen for this thread is passion but not socially respected.

Why do you care about being socially respected? Who is it you want to please? Parents? Society in general?

I would suggest you try and follow your passion there are plenty of jobs you could do within football.


"Alternatively I could get a degree in something 'fairly' interesting and get a professional job, earn decent money, have a family etc, live 'comfortably'."

You mean do things which are socially acceptable?

[Footballman]

Thanks for the links Orecle!

Eric - Thanks for the guidance. How good am I? You know what...I've never tested myself out, like having a Ferrari, but never seeing how fast it could go on a racing track. I just don't know..but I know I love the game. When I was younger I was captain of the school teams without putting any effort into it...I just followed the idea that education came first..getting the top grades..pleasing parents, the football(soccer) was just a hobby. The startling thing that I'm starting to recognise is that I don't think I will ever be able to explore my potential in anything, such as soccer,...unless I can get rid of those parts of my life I hate(such as the degree). Would you agree that one bad thing can affect everything else? I wonder how good I could have been had I put some deliberate attention into the soccer...I sense I would have been a top top player..maybe a professional but maybe not.

It's only now I'm realising why everyone at school was quite envious of my talent..I never really embraced it though. It doesn't really feel like a gift or a talent either, it's just 'there', just feels right, just something that's in me.

Inscient - Yeah I suppose those things are socially acceptable. Who do I want to please? Parents.

[SimonaRich]

If you are really passionate about something you can always develop it into business. You don't need employment to do what you want, it is not as hard as people think to start your own business.

It may take around 6-9 months to take off, but who cares? It is better to establish something in such period of time to be happy for years to come rather than to be stuck making money for someone else.

[time traveller]

Originally Posted by Footballman

Alternatively I could get a degree in something 'fairly' interesting [...]'.

Have you considered psychology as an each-way bet ?

With the long term aim of specialising in the sports area? Mix it with holiday & weekend football (time permitting). If the football thing doesn't work out... well you still have a degree, probably as useful as economics anyway.

Also your Uni should have someone to talk to for guidance.

[Excellent Lodestar]

What I think is that if you love something, you'll find a way. let the passion lead and put no restrictions on how it could manifest for you...

I read a story in Sports Illustrated about a man who played Quarterback in the NFL for a few years; he didn't play much at all. Sat on the bench behind John Elway...Stigmatized due to his race as well.
But he KNEW the game so well. people around him knew this too.he LOVED the game.he retired a "broken man" after a couple of seasons.
fast forward 5-6 years...His Mom sees an ad in the Penny trader from a father who wants tutoring for his High school QB son. She lets her son know, he responds, takes on the kid. The kid goes on to shatter school records in passing and is recruited highly by all the top schools. word gets out. soon he's privately tutoring a handful of qb prospects. the kids are ALL breaking records and receiving scholarship offers from the top Football colleges
Fast forward a few more years.This passionate man with a love for the game he never got a chance to play, now has a "quarterback school" well to do parents are sending their middle schoolers to him.Even the Great Joe Montana is sending his sons to this guy. Why? because kids that make it here go on to play in the NFL. not all of course, but there are something like 10 current NFL qb's that were trained by this guy. "the NFL QB factory" it's jokingly referred to now.
He has a whole company now of course and full training assistant staff and he makes an easy six figures---not that it was ever about money, of course. this coach is loving every minute of it because he 's teaching and sharing what he loves.
So whether it's American or world football,Art, Auto repair, Music, Pets, whatever... never let go of what you love.

[Andrew Brunelle]

Economics is going to become more and more depressing as time goes on. You are better off in any field, especially one you enjoy. Find something you enjoy and that there is a market for and you should be set.

[Peek]

why not coach? Get a phd or what ever in motivating people.
See how you feel in that direction, Dr. Coach!

[Jarrod]

You will find it much easier to live a life in which that which you spend most of your day doing, you enjoy.

If you hate economics now then the mere fact of being paid to do it will not make you any happier for the next 30 years of your life.

Open your mind to ideas of how you could make money. If you are truly passionate about soccer (like you would enjoy spending 11 hours a day on it) then provide you have atleast average skills you can progress. Look around the area at ALL the different ways people make money related to soccer and see if there is one that particular matches your skills or skills you can develop.

Then go for it. It's not easy doing the unconventional, especially because parents generally shy away from risk in regards to their children.

[Power]

Originally Posted by Plato

What would you do if you were a person who doesn't know who or what they are?

I'd go find myself and do some soul searching.

I'm a firm believer of the quote, "Seek and ye shall find. Ask and ye shall receive." If you seek hard enough you will find what you are looking for. The problem is that people give up searching, thus never find what they are looking for.

Also, keep yourself occupied while you are searching. Once you find what you are looking for, you will realize that somehow the dots are all connected.

[alainplus]

All my classmates are saving up for the hottest gagdet on the market; I'm saving up so I can buy two digital camcorders to film movies and what not. I'm not however majoring in film. I'm majoring in nursing, which tends to be very high paying and requires relatively little schooling compared to stuff like law and medicine, which don't even guarantee a decent salary until 6-8 years later. Now, I don't hate nursing. I'm not in love with it. But my GPA so far is a 3.90. So... I must be doing something right. But I mostly plan on using my salary to finance my actual passions (film and writing). I'll be damned if I end up being a poor film student working up the wretched Hollywood slave machine.

so I'm saying. Major in something that will give you relatively good returns for little work. So you can spend most of your time in school playing soccer and shadowing coaches. Just talk to different kinds of people to find out what this is. When I mean talk, seriously go talk to dozens of people. Someone out there knows the easy way out.

School is overrated anyway. People put way too much faith in the educational system and end up paying so much debt for an overrated exercise in forgetting over 70% of what you learned. The system really shows an utter disrespect for the diversity of lifestyles out there beyond the 9-5pm.

[ns123]

Actually, in my own experience, passion is very socially respected, sought out, and admired.

Hypothetically speaking - if you are passionate about soccer, but you are doing nothing of value with it, or you are unable to support yourself... the disapproval is of your inability to support yourself, not of your passion for soccer.

If you don't know how you can turn your passion into a way of financially sustaining yourself, that's ok. Choose a career that you don't hate, do that, and pursue soccer in your personal time. Be open to opportunities in your passions and to create true value with your passion. The universe rewards true passion and providing value. It will be revealed.

Some people prefer to separate their passions and their careers. They don't want their passion to become "work" to them. Some actually prefer that. To each his/her own. There are endless possibilities in life, you don't have to figure them all out now.

But if you're drifting along, hating your career, lamenting that you cannot live your soccer passion... wanting to just play soccer all the time, but not able to support yourself... well, the Disapproval you are facing is not disapproval that you have passion, it's disapproval that you are listless and have no direction.

[Footballman]

Thanks for all your responses. Alainplus...I know what you mean, I could have got a degree in most subjects fairly easily, had a good time at college and then focussed on developing a passion part time. A lot of subjects are 'neutral' to me, but this is one I dislike - which has penetrated throughout my entire life. Anyway, I think I will look to get a job in a grocery store or maybe a clothes shop or something along those lines, while I save up some money for doing something else I enjoy.

With respect to soccer coaching I am not a very vocal person...but I also sense this is because I'm doing something I dislike...were I to be doing anything I liked...I think I would be a different unrecognisable person and I might be more vocal - it's hard to say right now because I don't know that new person. I've never really committed to doing things I like, so the person that emerges will be news to me.

[CroMagna]

I'm in the same boat, I'm at a major crossroads in terms of career options, economics is one of the things that I'm supposedly suited for according to several different career assessments but some emotional part of me is resisting and finding it dry. But I can help.

Not socially respected?? Why wouldn't a coach of a youth soccer league be socially respected? I'm thinking of being a pro-sex feminist activist! At least you will feel comfortable as far as family support.

Your decision should have nothing to do with what others think, at least not those in your family.

Catering to others will make you look foolish in the long run. The grass is always greener. Imagine telling an old friend at a college reunion what you do for a living: "I coach a youth soccer league."

"*cough* poor *cough* unprestigious *cough*. You went to Eton (or wherever) and you're a youth soccer coach??"

Ok, now imagine telling the same friend "I'm a senior economist with the IMF."

"*yaaawn* square *yawn*. Man what a boring job that guy has. The IMF?? That poor guy doesn't care about anything other than money. What a conformist. Me? I design cool shoes."

There are tons of possible reactions, like nonchalance either way, probably mild appreciation regardless.

See what I mean about trying to cater to other people?

Originally Posted by Footballman

Alternatively I could get a degree in something 'fairly' interesting and get a professional job, earn decent money, have a family etc, live 'comfortably'.

Ok well that part we can completely rule out. An average, typical life is out of the question. If you have started living consciously then you owe it to yourself to live passionately. It would be better if you were in that rigid world of finance and banking making cold hard cash then just trying to pay the mortgage.

[Footballman]

I think if there is some emotional part of you resisting it then you should be wary of it, and if you do take on economics don't feel you have to stay with it(like I did).

I see what you mean about trying to cater to other people. I study economics but in truth I don't ever read the newspapers(at least not the parts that discuss economics and business). One thing I've also never done is watch the news...I was always told I 'should' keep up with the news...what a load of BS, I think I was right all along to stay away from feeding my mind with 'bad' news all day...just a shame I didn't take my advice when it came to the degree.

Anyway, I'm sure life will be better once I start listening to myself more. I honestly think I'm too much of a happy person for 'economics' - not to say all economists are dull or anything(or maybe I'm just a different personality type). I did a Myers briggs? test and it came out as artisan - I share the same personality as Dylan, Elvis, Mozart, Michael Jackson. When I play soccer I'm very creative, but also with music too and I might consider the music industry....does anyone here have any experience within the music business?

[CroMagna]

Also keep in mind: if you don't enjoy what you do, you will be become burned out. People who are burned out look indistinguishable from people who are actually lazy.

[time traveller]

I did economics at a UK uni, while working in the grocery store Saturdays & holidays.

Originally Posted by Footballman

Anyway, I think I will look to get a job in a grocery store or maybe a clothes shop or something along those lines[...]

You might find you end up either in management deadling with cash flow, forecasts , budgets, margins, stock turnover, overheads etc or shelf stacking on the shop floor - many (maybe most) of the perm guys doing that considered it a dead end job and would have swapped with a top Uni place in the blink of an eye.

Sorry but I can't see either of those as a easy way into football coaching. I'm not saying it can't be done or that people don't progress from those backgrounds. But I'm fairly sure that some (Ok not economics) degree from one of the top 10 universities in the world would open more doors for you.

Check if there are any advisors at Uni that might give advice?

[CroMagna]

Do you have a concrete plan for how you will become a soccer coach?

[kyle82]

that's quite a simply thing to answer. just stick with what you like and never will anyone would have the right to go against it cause we were made with freewill.. dont go with something you hate... that's how life goes man.

[Footballman]

Kyle82...What happens if you want to do something...want to be good at something and want to enjoy something? I wanted to be able to do an Economics degree...but something inside me hates economics...I want to like it...but I don't...it's horrible.

So even though I want to do something, it makes me unhappy doing it, which I suppose is some sort of contradiction...I suppose I could say that intellectually it would be nice to get an economics degree...but emotionally/spiritually it doesn't make me come alive.

[CroMagna]

Man I totally get that. We're basically in the same boat. I want to like econ because it's prestigious, lucrative, has this cold rational approach that is very objectivisty, etc. But some part of me thinks it's dry.

I'm in a similar boat with religion. I like conservative Christianity and think it might be true but there are many things about Christianity that I find repulsive.

I would say follow your heart. At least you know you have the degree as a fallback and can start working in that field to see if you actually like it. Then you can volunteer in soccer and see if you like that. Many econ people find econ dry until they actually try it by working.

[MartinP]

Hi Footballman,

This is a great post, cos its all about doing things just to please society others vs chasing a dream.

I know its simple to say, forget about others, and just do what you want. But there is a lifetime of social conditioning that can sometimes make that hard.

One thing I can say is, from reading what you have written, you must definitely NOT DO ECONOMICS. That is a recipe for lifelong misery.

if leaving university seems too much of a leap, change your major.

I also have to agree with cromagna that when you're burnt out, it can be hard work doing ANYTHING!

[pauldickinson]

You're in the UK, we have the Premier League! Go for the football! If there is a place for football surely it is this place!

I would always advise doing something you love over something you don't. If football is what you want to follow, then do so! You never know, you could end up coaching the Arsenal Youth Squad after 10 years (I'm a Gunner ;-)).

[ballhit2]

I would say, learn two or three other languages who have good football players, say Spanish and Portuguese and Italian.

Then, study some crazy esoteric brain change system like, NLP!

Finally, watch 4 hours of soccer matches a day and get good at editing videos.

Economists don't even take into account the resources of the Earth when doing their analyses. F that bunkum-filled field!