How Emi Turned Career Blues to a Shiny Rainbow

“It’s not what you achieve, it’s what you overcome. That’s what defines your career.”

– Carlton Fisk.

Coming from the beautiful hills of Shillong, Emi had her dreams very concretely shaped in her mind. Emi is a 21-year-old girl who is currently pursuing Liberal Arts from Ashoka University. Although the road leading to this decision of choosing this stream was not easy for Emi, yet she proved that nothing is impossible with a little faith and effort.

In her own little head, Emi had always been seen as a reserved person. After completing high school, Emi left for Delhi University to complete her college education in the field of Commerce. 

Other than her academics, Emi is a person who would rather enjoy nature and indulge within herself by going on long walks. But one thing that always ignited her soul was her ambition to achieve! This also makes her a person who loves counseling other people with their career-related issues. Nonetheless, the road to success is never easy and Emi was already struggling with the choice of choosing commerce as her subject of study.

“By the end of the first year of my college, I had started to question my decision of choosing commerce. I started disliking that field of study and knew that something was not right about the direction of my career.”

Emi started her career in Commerce field at Shri Ram College, as it initially was the perfect fit to ace her ambitions. But little did she know that her heart didn’t belong to the career she was engaged in. Choosing commerce was not an accidental move from Emi’s end. 

Before she dived into this field, there weren’t many resources for Emi to gain awareness about the various available choices. Although there was no peer pressure from her family’s end, Emi still felt the pressure building up from inside. This career crisis led to an urge to discover herself to a deeper level. 

“As I went home for summer vacation and applied for internships. I came across a Public Policy Internship which stole my attention and I started reconsidering my decisions.”

Meanwhile, Emi was deeply agitated by the constant feeling of indecisiveness and often she would find herself questioning her capability. So in order to get a distraction from that feeling, Emi had joined her college theatre group too. The career transition also costed her guts to stand up for herself because no matter how supportive her family was, Emi couldn’t explain to them a field they were unaware of.

“I started feeling anxious all the time. This also affected my outlet of anger to seem unfavourable and my mind was constantly getting diverted with a lot of overthinking.”

Unable to understand her mental state, Emi decided to take up counseling for herself. This was when Emiridlda came across Sudha from YourDOST. Sudha, the counselor, suggested a few exercises after understanding her situation completely. Emi believes that the best part about the counseling process was that Sudha supported Emi with her decisions which she needed the most. Moreover, Emi being a reserved person had found a safe space to vent out to. 

“I started to channel my energy to completely be myself. That was how I could be the most productive version of myself.”

Counseling helped Emi uplift back the lost confidence and regain her identity back. Eventually, Emi’s overthinking had also turned into thin air and the way of expressing her anger became composed over time. Emi described a counselor as a person who is somewhere in between family and friends where she could be completely herself without any filters. 

Emi extends her hearty gratitude to Sudha for believing in her and pushing her to believe in herself. In a fun rapid-fire round, Emi rated her overall development through counseling with a straight 4 out of 5. 

We, at YourDOST, feel delighted to see Emi now who is proudly pursuing Liberal Arts with Financial Aid from Ashoka University. Emi indeed took such a bold step towards her career and wish her luck and success! 

Emi’s Warrior Tips:
1. Usually the people who are shy or don’t like to express much, are more hesitant to open up in front of a counselor. But the truth is that one doesn’t even need to tell the full name to their counselor and can find a safe space to find solutions.
2. When it comes to anonymity, YourDOST is the place where you can share your problems and feel safe about not revealing your identity.
3. There is always a way out of your problems. Sometimes, you should do it forcefully even if you’re not comfortable. The counselor can help you achieve the same.

Are you someone who has gone through a difficult phase and emerged stronger and better, with some professional help? Share your story with us to encourage thousands of others who might be struggling. Click here to submit your story.