1. "Clearly, reality doesn't always match up to that traditional linear career path. These graduates, whether by design or by accident, have channeled the real, deep value of their academic and life experiences, and taken them beyond traditional thinking...liner thinking can keep you from thinking broadly about you options and being open minded to new opportunities." (4)
I found the passage of linear thinking to be quite interesting, through out our college life, we think that there should be a linear relationship or symmetry that exists when choosing majors and careers, but through this passage and quote I learned that this isn't always the case. Traditional linear career path thinking is saying "since i am majoring in geography, i will be a high school geography teacher." Through this quote i was able to understand that, with your values, academic knowledge, life experiences, and skills you can open up a more vast amount of opportunities and doors which can help avoid the narrowness of the traditional linear thinking. Instead of being a high school geography teacher you can also be a editor for a publishing house. Using the chaos theory, you can have a bigger amount of options regarding choosing a career. I also found it interesting when i learned the traditional linear thinking was something that occurred more in the 20th century where things were a little bit more predictable, than the fast moving and ambiguous 21st century.
2."It's ridiculous to ask liberal arts students what they plan to do in five years. They don't even know what they plan to have for dinner." (8)
I found this quote to be meaningful because it is a very realistic and factual opinion. Before entering college, i had always thought that most people, including myself, know what they want when they go to college. But this is not the case because the road to one's career is very unpredictable and complex, full of twists and turns. I realized soon well into my first semester, that i did not know what i wanted from myself 4-5 years down the road. Even though some of us might like to walk down a straight and narrow path that brings us to our future straightforwardly, this is not always the case because both life and career choices are full of ambiguity and unpredictability which can sometimes be a positive thing.
3 "You might be surprised to learn that in one study of university graduates almost 70 percent reported that their careers were significantly influenced by unplanned events- in other words the butterfly effect." (10)
I found this quote and the story that well along with it about the student majoring in psychology to be very interesting, because it was a great example of how the Chaos Theory worked. This quote and the story connected to the Chaos Theory. I found this quote to be interesting because it challenged the idea that everyone must follow a linear path when thinking of career goals. Instead of an art major becoming a cartoonist, through a logical train of thought, why doesn't an art major become a special prosecutor at a DA's office by widening the narrow train of thought and opening more options for yourself? It also shows that unplanned events can always change the future, whether if it's for the better or worse. For example, the psychology student, who started off in a liner path to getting a PH.d, she soon changed her mind after she had interned and helped create an Native American exhibition. Through the unplanned internship she found what was her calling which lead her to a career that follows the chaos theory.
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