Too Many Interests!

[oysterman]

Hi, I am unsure of what to do.

I am about to enter uni to study a mixture of biology and chemistry. This is because I have a MASSIVE passion for plants and want to eventually work with them every day.

However, I have so many other interests that it is giving me doubts about committing to science.
For example, I LOVE music and play it to a high level. I love to make visual art. I love photography. I love to study history. I LOVE to study foreign language and culture. I want to study anthropology. I want to study neurology and psychology. I want to help people with mental health issues.

I don't know how to choose what area to focus my life into.
The plant interest seems to be slightly bigger than my interests in the others, but I feel like that could easily change if I studied further into the other areas. Hence, I am at a loss as to whether I should really go for the plant interest, when I miss out on studying the other things.

[Loreena]

You really need to make up your mind. You can't be everything all at once. 

Consider some factors before you make the final choice

Money

Marketability and Demand

Level of Interest 

Hazards and obstacles involved

Skill Sets 

Financially Viable 

Pragmatic considerations

Level of comfort and suitability 

Contribution to your personal growth 

Don't make a decision in a hurry. 

[leonardo]

Hi @oysterman ,

i used to have the same problem and i couldn't make up my mind. When you make a decision you should rely more on your aptitudes and your specific values. Because aptitudes are natural abilities and they don't have anything to do with interests,culture etc.. We develop aptitudes on our early years of life and then they tend to stay constant during our lives. I highly suggest you to read about them on the Johnson O Connor foundation: http://www.jocrf.org/aptitudes  and also their book: http://www.jocrf.org/sites/jocrf.org/files/assets/Understanding_Your_Aptitudes.pdf

It really helped me on understanding why i am good at some things and why i can't do others. I hope it will do the same to you!   

 

[Evilwave Heddy]

You're just as confused as someone who has no interests at all.  Get the Life Purpose course....or you could try testing the waters for each area of interest (2-3 months each) and see if you really are that interested in said areas.  I did this with making music and found that my interest for Microbiology was stronger.

[Damir Elezi]

I also have a shit ton of things that interest me. Keep in mind that you can pursue all of those, if you like. To find out what you should pursue mainly, you should ask yourself what you want to have in your life. What your lifestyle should be like. Visualize a lifestyle according to each of those interests and try to find out which of those you'd like the most. I would also recommend finding ways of trying all of those out. If possible, go visit some lectures in university about all the topics you like, do voluntary work, etc. This way you will see which of these you really like the most in practice. 

[pluto]

I'm the same, i love too many things, i go through phases from a few weeks to a few months and once i feel I've mastered or feel completed in that category then i switch to what comes next, constantly growing but never really found a place for me. I can't be kept in one spot for too long without becoming really bored.

[Gavalanche]

It kind of goes against the "focus on one thing and master it idea", but I think some of us might be just wired differently, more oriented towards piecing together the bigger picture and thus really wanting to explore many things, finding it extremely painful to limit ourselves to one avenue. I know I've struggled with this a lot and found some solace in the "multipotentialite" community (probably mentioned elsewhere on this forum somewhere).

Emilie Wapnick runs this site: http://puttylike.com/
And just released this book (which I haven't read yet) https://www.amazon.com/How-Be-Everything-Guide-Those/dp/0062566652
She also has a TedTalk floating around out there somewhere.

It might be of some interest to people on this thread. Again, there are probably dangers and cop-outs to be wary of when thinking along these lines... I guess - lean heavily on strategic thinking and your intuition as best you can, when navigating these waters.

Another perspective is one that Sadhguru talked about before - about how we're all craving more and more all the time and want to do everything and have everything - he says we're really yearning for infinity (i.e. our true selves). So, I have a suspicion that through deeper spiritual work, this need and want to study and learn and experience absolutely everything in the world on material level might start to fade away, to more sane levels. Also pretty sure I butchered what he actually said, so it might be worth trying to track down that video!

Edited May 8, 2017 by Gavalanche

[aurum]

I'll give you some broad advice that may or may not be helpful for you right now: embrace your multi-interests.

Yes, it's true that mastery of something is important. And mastery takes many, many hours of intense focus and work. So if your focus is diffused, you may not master something very quickly.

But, consider that life purpose is not a straight forward, clear cut process. Consider that it might be messy, something that you carve out slowly over the years as you understand yourself more and more.

And even still, it will be messy. Ambiguity has to start becoming your new comfort zone.

There is no one who has your uniqueness. So no one can tell you who you are.

It's scary because we're so used to looking to others for answers. But this is one question that no one can answer for you. They can only reflect back the knowingness you already have.

So embrace your interests. That genuine joy and "rightness" you feel for doing something is a sign that "this is why you're here".

[Leo Gura]

@oysterman A quality problem.

Don't theorize too much about it. Pick a thing and start making your first small bet. That will yield feedback within a few months, allowing you to gain more clarity.

There is only so much clarity one can get through sitting and thinking about these things. Your small bets don't need to be perfect. They just need to be within the right ballpark.

If the best thing you can think of is working with plants. Roll with that for the next 6 months and see how it feels.

[oysterman]

Thank you everyone. So much good advice!

I guess I can't go wrong if I follow a great passion and continuously adjust course as I discover more and more about my interests.

I found this post a while ago and people in a similar position may find it useful: