by Rob Dwortz, Class of 2027
Every person has a different definition of “work.” Work could be your purpose, your chore, or just your way of figuring things out. At my first-ever Luther Hodges Living Room Conversations event, I gained a new perspective on work and my education that I never knew I needed.
The conversation started with introductions, and it took no time for my engaging group to tear through any fog of awkwardness. Within minutes, we had reached vulnerable topics, discussing our purpose while still finding time to complain about classes and joke about the previous weekend. As the conversation went on, we discussed the role of work in our lives. What does work mean? What motivates you? What are you working towards? The prompts sent us down an exciting rabbit hole on the subject. Some of my group members cited religion and how it provided them with courage, some spoke of large humanitarian goals, but some (like myself) simply said we liked to be busy.
Beforehand, I hadn’t ever thought about work very critically. I have goals, I enjoy my classes, but why exactly do I endure 10 or more hours of stress each day? At first, I thought I just liked to have something to do; maybe I enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment when I completed a task. However, as we delved deeper, many of us in my group surrendered our insecurities. Whether it was comparing your career progress to others or keeping up with exercise, it appears that students are set up to feel as if they’re never doing enough. One topic that brought us to this conclusion was consulting. As it turns out, none of us really knew what consulting was or what it takes to be a consultant. Even so, when we introduced ourselves, more than half of us said we were interested in pursuing it for a career. Why? Well, we decided it was high-paying and people-facing, pretty great for personable scholars. As we talked, though, we ventured further from the money and closer to the “me” and how to value our own wellness in this spiral into the start of our careers.
Similar to how one peer said they skipped a professional event that day because they simply needed to take a nap, we can all give ourselves more grace in our path to “greatness,” or whatever it is you chase. Looking forward, I might hit snooze instead of going on another run, or I could travel and research before entering a career role, one that fills me with purpose. Regardless, this conversation took me out of my own head and reminded me how to take a deep breath before I leap.
