Is Dietitian a Good Career Choice?

How can I discuss my career choice with my parents?

• Before any details are discussed, I would like to inform that I prefer advices from adults (especially career counselors) to those from younger people, because this is a very important issue. However, I still welcome comments from everyone. The preferences aside, I am going to explain my problem in the following order: 1. When I was a child, my parents asked me if I wanted to learn piano. I know nothing about it at the time so I agreed. I studied on and off for about 4 years. 2. I quit taking piano lessons when I entered high school because I didn't plan to become a musician at that time. 3. I disliked high school very much and do not like many subjects taught there, such as science, mathematics and English grammar. I was mildly depressed during those 3 years and had many emotional problems. 4. I entered college and studied science. Soon I found that I didn't like it any more than I liked high school, so I decided to drop out. 5. I thought that music would be the right choice for me, since I liked to listen to a lot of music. I told my parents that I wanted to be a pianist. At first they objected, but eventually they believed me and paid for my private piano lessons. 6. At first I practiced hard, but after a few months, the initial enthusiasm died out and I began to feel bored when I practice piano. I didn't realize it at the time, but deep down inside I knew that I had made the wrong career choice. I didn't want to quit and thought that I must practice more, so I persisted even though I usually went to piano lessons unprepared. 7. I started to surf the Internet for several hours a day to escape from boredom and stress. At first I thought that I had an Internet addiction disorder. I believed that I were just being lazy, so I tried to practice more and force myself to go off line. But no attempts to practice more worked; I still disliked practicing despite of my piano teacher's advices and encouragements. 8. I started to read more about Internet addiction disorder and realize that I surfed the Internet to escape from studying piano. My 'addiction' was only a symptom of an underlying problem. 9. I changed my attitude and allow myself to stop practicing. My Internet cravings disappeared immediately. I feel liberated and start to enjoy my life again, but I didn't tell my parents or my piano teacher anything about my idea. 10. I took career personality tests and found out that music is not the right job for me, but I am afraid that my parents will get angry and refuse to give another chance. I have already changed my career path from science to music. They paid a lot of money for my piano lessons and will probably think that I am just being lazy or indecisive. My teacher might think the same way. 11. I don't know what to do to convince my parents to let me start over again. I like to listen to music, but I am very confident that a musician's life is not for me. I will never make spontaneous career decisions again, so this time I am going to think very carefully. Even if my parents let me start over, I still owe them a huge sum of money. My life is in a huge mess right now, so any advice will be much appreciated. P.S. I am from Thailand. My relationship with my parents are not very good, especially with my father.

• Answer:

  Well you don't want to get stuck in a career you don't enjoy. My advice is, if you don't have another plan right now, quit piano and just work for now and save up money. When you decide what you want to be, then you can find a path that is right for you. It isn't your parents' decision what you do in life, it is your decision. Their decision is whether or not they pay for it, which you are correct they may not want to do. You are an adult now and if they chose not to pay then you are responsible for paying for it yourself. Don't have a lousy future because your parents won't pay. Work for a while and save up what you can, and go from there. If there is a will there is a way! Good luck! P.S. I am a younger person, but even a professional can't make up your mind for you.