Career Pressure in Your 20s: What No One Tells You

This post is for everyone who is resilient, determined, and who won’t bow down before pressure.

During our school days, life mostly, even if not for all, at least for most of us, goes like a breeze. But once we reach adulthood, problems arise. When we enter our early 20s, the pressure of becoming independent hits hard, and starting to earn on our own really hits hard.

It is that phase of time when many teens who transition into adulthood seem to succumb to pressure. Some aimlessly start studying for competitive exams. Some try hard for NEET and JEE exams, while some others simply choose an untrodden path.

Parents have expectations from their kids, which to a certain extent is inevitable. But peer pressure and what society will think of a child’s choice often does more harm than good.

That is the time when parents should reach out to their child and ask what they actually want to become in life. It is okay if there is not enough money to harbour costly dreams, but at least there should be transparency. The same should be clearly communicated to the child.

At the same time, it is a prudent decision for many children to at least secure a job or a career first, and then chase their hobbies. This is in case their hobbies seem too difficult to pursue or to turn into a career later. For example, children should first of all complete their graduation.

Doing graduation is often not a waste of precious years. It is because it is the minimum specific educational criterion that can help open a ‘path B’ in case the first one, like cracking a government job or chasing a dream occupation, does not work out.

If one wishes to study more, one practical step can be to start earning moderately well so that it can support further studies, even if it does not improve the family’s financial condition immediately.

When a person starts earning, confidence often builds gradually, and there is a clearer understanding of what one truly wants to be in life. Trying for competitive job exams in government departments is not bad. But spending 6–7 years preparing for highly cut-throat competitive exams like UPSC, IBPS, and others can become a serious issue to think about.

A regular college and a regular office job together are often next to impossible. In such situations, prioritising the job may become necessary. Once there is some stability and understanding of work, education can still be continued through distance courses, or preparation for government competitive exams can go on side by side, even if it means burning midnight oil. At the same time, health should not be ignored. Nothing comes before mental and physical health, not even billions and trillions of money. Once health is lost, everything is lost.

Be it office or college, they often appear to be more concerned about their compliance and rules than individual welfare. The same can be said about other institutions as well.

For example, banks sometimes seem hesitant to finance even a small personal loan of Rs. 50k to a middle-class individual, yet in some cases, large loans are given to those who later fail to return that money.

Offices do not always make time schedules flexible enough to allow someone to complete a regular college course. At the same time, regular colleges also do not always make classes flexible enough, such as evening or night shifts, to help individuals support their families or financial conditions.

It is often said that “time favours the brave, but in real life, rules are amended for powerful and rich people,” who may not depend on such systems and often have other options to explore.

It is not very common to see schools, colleges, or universities rescheduling exam schedules in light of a student or alumnus going through rigorous chemotherapy or a serious surgery. Yet, in some cases, for cricketers and many other celebrities, university exam schedules and norms are adjusted, and they are allowed to take exams in private.

This reflects a reality that many people feel exists, even if it is not always openly discussed.