Change of Heart or Giving Up?

Coming into college, architecture was it. There was no other option. I was going to get into the College of Design after my Freshman year, and become the best damn architect that ISU had ever seen. After college, I would get an internship at an architectural firm back in Lake Forest or Chicago, Illinois. Over the years, I would gain knowledge, experience, and the networking opportunities to open my own firm or create a partnership firm with my best friend Jordan Euson. I would then create residential and commercial buildings that would shock the people that saw them. I would become publicly and nationally known for my structures. I would continue to be an architect until I was no longer physically capable of performing the necessary tasks associated with the profession.

...Nowadays, I am in the middle of a dilemma. I'm starting to have second thoughts about architecture. I may like it for the wrong reasons, and not for what being an architect actually entails. In addition, my heart simply might not want to be an architect, but rather my wallet.

The past several days I have thought about this idea for many hours, but I am still stuck. I'm beginning to realize that my heart might have an alternate passion: teaching. Since I can remember, I have been asked by my peers to help them with their schoolwork, and I have obliged to do so with great pleasure. I love helping other people figure something out for themselves, and be a part of that learning process that leads to the eventual improvement of someone's life. As someone who has helped people in the past, that moment where you see someone finally "get it," is one of greatest feelings in the world. You just aided someone, and by helping them, have made them a better person. You cannot top that feeling.

In addition, I would also love to become a personal trainer. Bodybuilding/weightlifting is my favorite activity in the world. I love spending hours in the gym, pushing my body to the limits in an effort to improve my strength. Again, I have helped many other (via them accompanying me to the gym) improve their health and strength, and that is another tremendous feeling. Seeing other people improve themselves (and in turn improve their lives in general) is such an overwhelming feeling of joy, that I just continue to feel that again and again.

History Teacher at a High School (preferrably Lake Forest High School, and hopefully after a while move on to teaching at a University) and being a personal trainer during the summer months seems to be my newly found true PASSION.

One problem I am having with all of this, is that I feel that if I were to begin pursuing my two other options, that myself/other people would view it as me giving up. I have never been one to give up anything in my life, and I sure as hell don't want to start doing it now. So every day I ask myself whether or not this change would be me quitting, or simply having a change of heart and realizing my true goals in life. While typing these words, I am still uncertain of what I am going to do.

My biggest fear in life is being unhappy. I don't care what material possessions I acquire in life, but if I remain happy, than my goal will have come to fruition.

Anyway, my indecision is starting to weigh me down a bit. I don't know how long it will take for me to realize my actual educational/professional desire, but I hope that when that time comes, it will feel like the right move.