The Ebbs and Flows of Ambitions by Kyle

The Ebbs and Flows of Ambitions by Kyle - June 2017 Scholarship Essay

“Houston, we have lift-off!” As the space shuttle lifts off of planet earth, the g-forces initially felt are unmatched. The force required to reach the velocity needed to get into earth’s orbit is astronomical. So it makes sense that anyone on the rocket would be jolted back into their seat. Once the space shuttle has successfully entered the earth’s orbit, the mission becomes priority number one. It didn’t matter what the mission was, as a 6-year-old boy, I wanted to be that astronaut. I knew that men had already flown to space and actually walked on the moon. My only wish was that the era in which we were challenged to walk on the moon would be an era in which I could have personally risen to that challenge.

As I grew up, my dream career shifted from place to place. As I approached the age of ten and made my way through the teens, aspirations to become a rollercoaster designer, a fighter pilot, and a doctor had come and gone. Out of these three careers, being a doctor is the one that I put the most thought into. Throughout my first 3 years of college, I was set on being a trauma surgeon. Trauma surgeons were just so respectable, cool, and brave. When someone was minutes away from death, the trauma surgeon was there to keep them alive. That is who I wanted to be. The patients wouldn’t even know me. I wouldn’t know them. But in certain moments, I was saving their life. As I began college, this career was intensely appealing

College progressed, and my mindset began to change. My overall desire to become a trauma surgeon did not altogether disappear. But desires arose that ultimately commanded priority. A career as a surgeon demands a huge portion of your life. Long hours at the hospital and calls in the middle of the night would be routine. As I contemplated this career I began to realize my aspirations to be a family man. My dad was always home at night to show love to his wife and his two sons, and I decided that this is the kind of dad and husband I wanted to be. The life of a trauma surgeon jeopardized this future. So yet again, my decision on a career was changing.

So this brings us to present day, and the harsh reality is that I have not solidly decided on any specific career. My major is in biomedical engineering, and I will never regret putting in the hours and hard work to get my degree. However, I feel that I can confidently say I won’t want to be an engineer for the rest of my life. My ambitions cover such a wide range of topics, and what I truly desire is the freedom to chase all of those ambitions. I’ve come to realize that this will never change. I will always have the desire to do so many different things, and my dream career is a career in which I can chase all of these things. This means I need time, which is a valuable commodity that most people spend a lot of in their career. People trade money for so much of their time. Personally, I’d like to keep more of my time. I want to build my life around my job, not the other way around. From this desire stems a dream of owning my own small business. Particularly a business that is based on the internet. With this kind of business, I can set my own hours and work from wherever I want. Not only can I travel wherever I want, I can also give myself the freedom to pursue my ambitions and goals as they change. To me, this is "the good life", and the place where my dreams and goals are aimed.