Dear Marcus
As a thirteen year old, your life seems scary. You know at some point the security blanket of school will be taken away and you are going to have to fend for yourself. Before then you will probably make some poor decisions about exam choices. Don’t listen to your parents – what do they know – follow your heart. Trust me, choosing Technical Drawing instead of History is going to be a mistake. By the time you are at work there is going to be something called Computer Aided Design – you will never need to know how to draw the insides of an engine using a pencil and ruler.
Do what your heart tells you. Follow your passion, but don’t think you can make a career out of train-spotting. Hopefully that hobby will pass soon, but will leave you with some great stories about cruising round the country on trains that will inspire your children (or not!).
Find what makes you smile and think about how you can make a living out of it – you’ll do this after finishing your degree. Three years of study, to be followed by a career in HR, but first of all 5 years in a record shop. Rock and roll.
Your life will twist and turn and there will be times when you wonder if it will ever get better, but it will. Never close your mind to opportunities that are presented to you. It’s easy to say “no”, but so much harder to say “if only”. There is no such thing as a bad experience, just those that you can learn from. Do not limit your ambitions.
Be brave, be bold, and don’t think that careers advice is a Geography teacher asking you, “What do you want to do when you leave school?”.
Marcus (now old enough to be your Dad)
This letter was written by Marcus Jamieson-Pond, Head of Partnerships at www.plotr.co.uk
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