A 22-year-old’s take on figuring life out slowly.
At 22-years-old, I feel like I’m constantly stuck between: I should know what I’m doing with my life by now; and, I’m still basically a kid, trying to get assignments done. There’s this pressure, sometimes from family, sometimes from society, sometimes just in my own head, that I should already have a plan; a real plan, a five-year plan, a ten-year plan, a “this is exactly what I’m doing after I graduate” plan.
But honestly? It feels way too early for that.
It’s crazy to me that we’re expected to map out the next five or ten years when we don’t even know what might happen later today. Life changes so fast, sometimes in ways you can’t predict or control. So, planning every detail of the future at this age feels not just stressful, but kind of unrealistic.
When I look back at my 20-year-old self, I laugh a little. I was in my second year of university, going out with friends, going to events and exploring everything I could. Career? Future? Stability? Those things weren’t exactly on my radar. Now I’m 22, in my final year, and so much has changed. I’m more serious about my future. I look for opportunities. I think about my career more. But, even after all this, I still don’t know exactly what I want to do after university.
And honestly, that change in just two years says everything. If I can shift this much between 20 and 22, who knows who I’ll be at 25?
That’s why the idea of a strict five-year plan feels almost impossible. Your 20s are literally the years where you grow the most, change the most and discover who you actually are: not who you thought you were supposed to be. So, locking yourself into one path at 20 or 22 doesn’t make much sense.
Even with small plans, I notice this. I’ll make a whole weekly schedule, like every day planned out, super productive vibes, and then life just … doesn’t go according to plan. Things come up. Something changes. I get busy. I get tired. I change my mind. Basically, life happens. And if weekly plans are this hard to follow, how am I supposed to plan for five years?
Yes, goals are important. Deadlines help. Structure is good. But I think we confuse planning with control. Having a plan doesn’t mean everything will go the way you expect it to. And not having a plan doesn’t mean you’re lost or failing.
Right now, I’m learning to be okay with not having every answer. I’m learning to trust that it’s normal to figure things out slowly. I’m learning that it’s fine to grow into your future, instead of forcing it to happen all at once.
So, if you’re 20, 22, or anywhere around this age and you still don’t know what you want to do: that’s completely okay. You’re not behind. You’re not supposed to know everything yet.
We’re all figuring it out as we go. And maybe that’s exactly how it’s meant to be.
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