Autumn days remind me of Rilke, who spent lonesome and restless nights dreaming of a complete and perfect life. Surely it is too early to speak of a complete life as we have so many more days left to live. Rather, let’s focus on the days ‘before and after’ our college years.
  Have you ever pictured yourself after college? How much does it match your ideal self? Do you have a strategy in place to make the two alike? If you answered ‘no’ to any of these questions, you probably lost your peace of mind and your days are bound to be full of worry and stress. Since you have no exact idea what to do, your life cannot be satisfying.
  Life is a journey to discover your identity, and your time in college should be a step in that journey. An ‘identity’ can be simplified to ‘who you want to be.’ You can plan and try to become that person. An identity can be evaluated based on its desirability, just as wishes can be evaluated by ambitiousness. If you have found a desirable identity and realized that identity through an earnest life, you will have lived a successful life.
  The way to finding your identity is ‘alone and together.’ You should try to picture your future within your relationships with others. True success is to gain satisfaction and fulfillment in the present and future, and to help your family and community to also do so. Satisfaction is when your natural needs are met, but fulfillment is more than that; it is when your desires come true.
  Your identity cannot be realized on its own. You need to plan, implement and monitor. Plans are made of missions and values which do not change. Visions and strategies will change according to the situation you’re in. Your mission is why you exist, or your calling. It is the ultimate direction your identity heads towards as you age and grow. Values are what you believe to be right, the rules to your actions. They are the lines that you do not cross during the journey of life. Your vision is your future self, who you want to be. A strategy is made of goals that help realize your vision in each step of your life, and specific tasks to meet your goals. In order to judge whether you are living towards your identity and to modify your direction, you also need proper evaluation criteria.
  Many young people say their mission is to make plenty of money, but money is a goal or means, not a mission. Ask yourself “Why do I need this?” five times. Only when you can answer why you need it as itself and not as a means for something else, can you call it your mission. There are various means and each situation calls for a different one. Always try to find a better means that helps you get closer to your goals while protecting your values.
  Look up to the sun and stars in the clear sky and think of what you want to live for and what you want to protect. Watch over the completeness of the fields and picture yourself 30 or 50 years in the future. Think of how you need to change by the end of college in order to become that future you. It will become clear how you need to live your days. Your worries will disappear and you will find a peace of mind. Once you understand the meaning of life, your heart will become full with passion.