<p>This is similar to the post below about someone’s relationship being jeopardized by what parents want and what the kid wants.</p>
<p>Well long story short, my parents want me to go into business, I don’t (I’m not sure what I want, that’s why I’m taking a broad range of courses to see where I will be headed, but I know business isn’t my area). </p>
<p>Sure it’s easy to say “it’s your life. Will you be happy by doing what your parents want you to do?”</p>
<p>The troubling thing is, I would not be happy if I were to disappoint my parents, and conversely I would not be unhappy if my job didn’t interest me, but it made my parents happy. Meeting my parent’s wishes has always made me proud and happy even if the activity itself was mundane and uninteresting. </p>
<p>So I am not sure what to do… Maybe I have some psychological problem >.<</p>
<p>In other words, you live for your parents’ approval. If you’d be happy to conduct your life in that fashion indefinitely, study business. If you’re willing to find out who you really are, explore your options, and decide based on where your passion leads you. Who knows, it might be business.</p>
<p>““The troubling thing is, I would not be happy if I were to disappoint my parents, and conversely I would not be unhappy if my job didn’t interest me,””“”</p>
<p>Soooo… the question to ask THEM is… “Mom and dad, would YOU be happy if YOU make me work in a field that will make ME unhappy”???</p>
<p>In other words, are they as interested in YOUR happiness as YOU are in THEIRS??? Or is this some kind of “one way street” where only you care about making them happy?</p>
<p>My sister always wanted to become a nurse. However, my dad (who was paying her in-state tuition), vetoed her decision and told her to major in Computer Science because she “would make much more money.” My sister was not “(wo)man enough” to confront my dad, so she went along with his choice for her career. She did well in school and got a good job. However, all the time she HATED her major/career. When she had her kids, she happily quit her job AND NEVER touches a computer – not even for email. Being “forced” into a major/career by a parent is a very unfair thing to do. She readily admits that her hatred for computers is “unrational” but she says that she feels “sick” whenever she tries to use one. It just brings up all the “bad memories.” When her kids are a bit older, she’ll go to nursing school – and Dad won’t be able to say “boo” about it. :)</p>
<p>(I paid for my own education so my dad had no say in it at all. However, I don’t believe that paying for an education means that a parent has “final say” about a child’s major. I can understand a parent refusing to pay for a “basket-weaving” major, but if the major will result in a good-paying career, a parent should “back off.”)</p>
<p>You should not be guilt-tripped into making the choices your parents want. You can respect your parents, make your own decisions, and have your own life.</p>
<p><<< You can respect your parents, make your own decisions, and have your own life. >>></p>
<p>Absolutely…</p>
<p>I often wonder about parents like this. I wonder if anyone ever asks them WHO told THEM what career/jobs they HAD to have??? I know that no one told my dad what career he had to have yet he thought it was ok to tell my sister. Quite hypocritical.</p>
<p>It is a matter of communication with your parents. I am sure they only want the best for you and t be happy. Suggesting business they probably mean that yu will be able to find good paying job and not choose occupation where jobs come once every ten years…
If you can’t discuss it with them write them a letter, email. Explain your feelings, say what are your interests, what is your strategy, plans, how much you love them and respect their wishes…
it works both ways- kids like to do right thing so parents will be pleased but parents only want best for their kid and want their kid to be happy…</p>
<p>At this point, you may just have to just go “undeclared” and not tell them things like “I know that business is not for me.” They may just be “stressed out” with the whole college thing right now and are not ready to hear that business is not for you. </p>
<p>Perhaps, after a year or two and you have done your General Ed (or core or whatever they call it now), they will have seen how well you are doing in college, THEN they will be more open to hearing your plans.</p>
<p>I am assuming that they want her to get her B.A in an area that would lead to an MBA – such as a BBA or economics. I think that they are afraid that she will go into a “soft major” that won’t lead to much of a paying career.</p>
<p>When I was a young girl and my parents paid for my tuition, I had to go to college to become a teacher. I could have changed my major and then my parents wouldn’t have paid. So I became a teacher and taught for exactly one year. I then went to programming school and changed my life. </p>
<p>You can always be whatever you want, whenever you want. You can go to school on your parent’s dime and then do exactly what you want when you get out.</p>
<p>Business- to manage something? What jobs nowadays do MBAs get</p>
<p>I bet the parents aren’t really sure either, jsut sounds good, going into business, my child is</p>
<p>It should be economics, accounting, management, something more specific, because the “business” tem is so vague, bet no matter what classes the student took, the parents would say, thats not business</p>
<p>For instance, a history class, poetry, biology, whatever, make the student a better person, but “business” to the parents may just be a word, that is why I am asking</p>
<p>do they want child to be a manager somewhere, what industry, etc</p>
<p>Just curious. Have your parents ever mentioned regretting their decision? What did they say after you went back to school for programming?</p>
<p>Also, if you had just changed your major would they have really known? Schools (at least today) don’t give parents access to grades or registration info.</p>
<p>I think you are right. But I think many of those majors come under the “school of business” which is what they may mean.</p>
<p>Yes, I do think that their intention is to become prepared to work in management of some kind of corporation or to get the skills in order to become a small business owner.</p>
<p>I have to say that I never regretted not going fully into teaching. But the skills that I learned have definately helped me in my career. I learned how to put together plans and instructional media. It also helped me in speaking to large groups.</p>
<p>Any knowledge that you get is beneficial. They say that every person will have at least 5 careers in their lifetime. </p>
<p>But I must say, sometimes my dad asks me “Why don’t you go back to teaching?”. After having my own kids, there is no way that I would consider it. I much prefer the corporate world, even though that is not smooth either.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the responses…
I talked to my dad and he said he was willing to pay for my education even if I did not go into business.
He does however, want me to consider business as an option.
I am currently deciding on whether I should go to Cornell CAS (more open) or Stern NYU (what parents want).</p>