10 YEAR PLAN

I know that you don't need a plan to have a great or successful life. But for me having a plan, however vague, has always been reassuring. I love making lists, I love being able to see all my ideas. It helps me think. So lately (and by lately I mean the last two years or so) I've been investing a lot of worried thoughts into what I want to end up doing with my life. And I feel, at last, that I've come to a kind of plan that I am happy with. The future is such a big scary thing for me at the moment that god damn it, it's making me nervous just writing about it. I've decided I want to become a teacher. I want to teach Japanese and History, maybe English, Drama and other humanities as well. But mainly those first two. What's more I have a plan about how this is going to happen. It goes like this: finish undergraduate degree, work and save, move to Japan under the JET programme or something similar and get 3-5 years teaching experience in Japan, move back to Melbourne, do some kind of Master's degree in teaching and start job hunting. 

I am 21 now. Using this plan I should be able to be a teacher (with a job!) by the time I turn 30. If it is not exactly by then well.. that is okay too. But I am just thrilled to have some kind of idea of what I want to do. I'm really happy because, for a long time, I couldn't think of a way that my studies in Japanese would be able to land me a stable job in Melbourne, but I don't feel so lost any more! I was almost convinced that to have any kind of decent career I would have to move to Japan permanently, which is not something I want to do. I know, I know. The pay is not great and kids can be annoying. But, for me, the pros far out-weigh the cons. You get amazing holidays compared to other full time jobs. You get to perform a really wide variety of tasks. You're constantly meeting new and interesting people. You are helping and contributing to society in a very really way. And it pays better than what I am doing now (scanning groceries). Teaching seems rewarding, challenging, social and fun. I know it is going to be difficult, But I think I'm suited to it. I've always thought about diplomacy or something politics but those sorts of paths are just way too bureaucratic for me. I want to do something where I feel like I am actually making a difference and contributing positively to the world. And I feel like I can do that through teaching. 

Good luck self! I can't wait to see what happens.