career – Tiana Feng

As a recent graduate, the process of finding the right career has been quite scary. I heard of You Majored In What? by Katherine Brooks through my best friend and instantly picked it up. It was a refreshing take on job search in a non-linear matter.

As somebody with a Bachelors of Music as well as a degree in Entertainment Business Management, I thought my path seemed pretty linear. However, this book taught me that there are other ways to think. They implement what is called the chaos theory, and how our experiences in life can bring us elsewhere. As a graduate of something non-traditional, I’m always hit in the face with the question, “So, what are you going to do with that major?” and any career aspirations I have are often ones that are really awkward to explain to people.

You Majored in What? offered great advice on creating my own path and ignore what other people think about where I’m headed. It was a motivating book that taught me how to re-frame experiences into learning opportunities, no matter what they are.

There are some great exercises to discover what your true passions are. I found out that besides music, mine were psychology, social media and visual arts. In addition, there was great advice to interviews, resume writing and crafting your own personal story.

The book gears towards destroying the linear career path way of thinking. For example, just because you majored in engineering, doesn’t mean you have to be an engineer. To anybody who thinks they are stuck in a rut job search wise or even if you want to change your career trajectory, this is a wonderful eye opening book to pick up.

I leave you with this quote:

The only thing we know about the future is that it will be different. – Peter Druker

I graduated from University last June with a degree in Music Education, but I didn’t want to pursue being a music teacher. I’m one of those people who strive to find a career that I’ll love and be passionate about because I am a firm believe that when you find something you love to do, than you will never really work a day in your life.

I have always been fond of music and the entertainment industry. Almost a year ago, I started a music blog called Ride the Tempo that shared my love for music. I had never really heard of career colleges, where I could pursue the industry jobs, until my fourth year at University of Toronto, where I took a course on Music Business. Since last September, I have been taking the Entertainment Business Management program at Metalworks Institute.

I’m in to my second term now at the school and I love the program. As a person that has attended both the university and (private career) college institutions, it is pretty interesting to compare the two very different dynamics. Firstly, there is the class size difference. At Metalworks, there are 11 people in my program that take all the same courses at the same time. Since I was a music student at U of T, some of the courses had few people, but the big ones still had around 20. The small class allowed us to become close with our teachers as well as each other. In our Business Communications course, we became comfortable enough to tell really touchy tales in our lives.

The one thing I miss about University is the work ethic. I’m a workaholic and a perfectionist when it comes to things. I get things done with quality and efficiency, whether it’s challenging or not. That’s one thing a college doesn’t really teach. Most of my peers at Metalworks haven’t had that experience where the work just has to be done, the textbook just has to be read, and you have to care enough, or you’re going to fail. I miss being pushed a little; everyone here sort of expects their exam and test questions to be handed to them before it happens. A career in the industry is my dream, so I guess I take things really seriously. Plus, Metalworks is another $17,000 on top of the $80,000 at U of T. I want to be prepared not just to do super in my courses, but so I have enough knowledge to be successful and prepared for whatever is ahead.