I am 24 years old and graduated from university 3 and a half years ago with a 1st class degree in Mathematics and Computer Science. I began a very well paid career with very good prospects, but the job involves qualifying as an actuary with many exams to pass (I need to study while working), typically over 5 years. However I was distracted from my studies after starting well, I find it difficult to concentrate on my studies and I am struggling to pass the exams. I also appear to have lost my career focus and any aim in life, I feel that I?m drifting through life. For example, 3 years ago I was focused on doing well at work, making good progress, I would have a nice house, get married have children and so on. Now I have lost that desire and my parents are thinking to arrange a marriage for me next year, if this happened 3 years ago I would have thought it would have been a good idea, but now I?m wary that I will not have a successful career and could struggle to provide for a family. Over the last 6 months I spent some time trying to look for an alternative career (many of which pay a lot less than I earn now), but I have had no success.
Jazakallah for writing to the institute regarding your loss of concentration and lack of direction.
It would appear that you are experiencing an early bout of “burn out”. Is it possible that you have been studying without taking a break at all between one year to another? The qualification that you are now studying towards is an extremely demanding one and needs a great deal of sacrifice. It is a personal career choice or have you been told to study towards being an actuary? Did you go through an aptitude test before you decided on this career path? Although you have obtained extremely good results in your previous exams, you need to find out if you are cut out to be an actuary.
Another factor you need to keep in mind is that earning vast sums of money cannot bring you happiness. Yes, we all desire some comforts and luxuries in life, but is it worth the loss of peace of mind and lack of time for yourself or your loved ones? Your mail really charts out quite clearly what the cost to you is really. How about taking a few months off from studies and work. Allow me to suggest that an Umrah trip or joining the Jamaat brothers for a few weeks may help you to obtain some spiritual upliftment. If this is not possible, how about polishing up on your Quranic knowledge, hadith, fiqh etc and increase your Islamic knowledge by joining learned elders. You could also get involved with the less fortunate in your community which will help you to refocus on life itself. It is so easy to get caught up with ourselves when we are involved in chasing one qualification after another.
At the end of the day, the choices are yours. You need to examine what your real needs are and focus on your goals. You need to be comfortable and happy with the career you have chosen. May Allah Ta’ala grant you success in this world and in the hereafter and grant you a pious wife. Ameen. I have included some duas which you may find helpful.
And Allah Ta’ala knows best.
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CHECKED & APPROVED: Mufti Ebrahim Desai