My Epiphany

Career choices as anyone will tell you are difficult ones to make. It is a common sight to see youngsters especially in high school sit and talk about what subjects to choose in 11^th, what specialization to study with in graduation, and which professional course to pursue. In my case it was a bit different – or at least it felt at that time like I’m the only one going through this dilemma – do I know better today? I hope to find out soon! But before that, here’s my story…

All along I was very sure that after finishing my 12^th grade I would study Arts. I wanted to pursue a career that will keep me connected with and working with people. But when the time came to choose a profession, I veered towards Law. I reasoned out and convinced myself of the respect that lawyers enjoy in society, the power to not only be a part of change but to be the most influencing aspect of a decision, and also the opportunity to make a reasonably good income. But now when I look back at my decision to take up Law as a career, I realize how outwardly driven it was – being the bubbly, fun, youngest-of-my-siblings variety, no one really thought I could make it as a lawyer and no one took my decision seriously. It became more of a challenge for me to prove everyone wrong.

So off I started with preparations for the law entrance exams. Initially I really enjoyed the content of the papers that I had to study because with theory it also had applied knowledge which I have always enjoyed. As a student I could never mug up and my rote memory was not good, so when I found out about law I was really happy to know that it was not only about learning theory but also application of that knowledge. I got through in one of the best law schools of the country, but my bigger high at that point was the fact that I was able to cock a snook at all those people who thought I couldn’t crack it.

But as always, when reality hits, it hits hard. I realised after joining college that it was very less about understanding and more about mugging up. It was like parrot training. May be it is just my side of the story but I did not appreciate the way law was taught.

It’s not that I rejected it in entirety. I did try to approach it in a different way - through taking up internships and grabbing opportunities to see the functioning of law in practice. And I realised that it is so different in the real world. I had no clue as to what has to be done and how. As they say, everyone learns in the process of working the intricacies of a job. I too learnt a lot while interning, about how law plays out in reality. And I also realised that I can never see myself spending the next 20 years of my life as a lawyer or litigator. It felt lifeless to me.

By now I was in the penultimate year of my post-graduate course, so you can imagine how disruptive this realisation was to me. I went through a cycle of aimlessness, worry, exhilaration, screeching joy and nail-biting fear. I wondered if I had just wasted 2 years studying something that I had no intention of pursuing as a career, or whether I was taking a rash decision to quit on Law. After the customary mourning period, I decided to think a little out of the box and explore my other interests, combine my knowledge of law with it and make a career out of it. This might seem as a risk but at the end of the day it boils down to what makes you happy.

One of the areas I really want to work in, is counselling. When I see hoards of children who are confused, lost, reeling under parental and peer pressure, and losing their precious childhood years, I yearn to reach out to them, give a non-judgmental ear and help them unravel some of the confusion and chaos in their minds. Introspection, research and talking to a few of my mentors helped me figure out that a great way to marry my passion to my professional qualifications, is to pursue a career in child counselling, where a legal knowledge of child rights and associated laws can help me make a difference in this space. I know that there is a lot of effort and practical steps I still need to take towards realizing this, but after many months of confusion and questioning, it was personally heartening to arrive at an answer that would allow me to always carry along with myself the knowledge that I have got by studying law and at the same time apply it in the career that I choose.

So that’s my story of learning that it is never too late to recognise your passion and work upon it. What’s yours?

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Madhulika Dasgupta

Madhulika is a guest blogger for The Potter's Earth. She is pursuing a masters in Law from Law Faculty, Delhi University. Meanwhile her heart is set on doing something for society and people, especially children. She is creative, bright and fun, and now also a budding writer. This is her first attempt at professional writing, and she enjoyed the experience enough to give it another shot!