When I finally realized how I wanted to spend my career, I had already been sending out applications for two months. I sat in front of my laptop and detailed my strategy to the Cornell professor on the other end.
And as we spoke, I saw for the first time that I’d drawn a winding line with switchbacks and hairpin curves that led from my current post-undergrad life to the profession I had always wanted.
But I was taken aback when the professor responded quickly, with the directness of someone who’d had this conversation before. “If you want to be a writer,” she said, “you should try to be a writer.”
I left the conversation with tips and ideas for how to write professionally. More importantly, I came away with a renewed clarity about my goals.
