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Perils of “Doing Your Own Thing”

Contrary to what many may think, recent studies indicate that “doing your own thing” has contributed to frustration and disappointment among young adults today.

In the “conventional” way of life, young people grow up more or less following the path of the previous generations. They know pretty much which way they are to go. “Doing your own thing,” explains professor Angus Campbell of Michigan University, “has a lot of hazards, however, because it creates very uncertain situations. . . . This uncertainty, I suspect, has created a lot of stress and tension among young people.” The result, according to the professor, is a long list of “negative things like alcoholism, drug abuse, suicide, marital discord.”

A certain way of life may appear to be very attractive on the surface, but the risks involved may be far greater than one can foresee or accept. The lesson that all of us, young and old, can learn here is this, as stated in the Bible: “There exists a way that is upright before a man, but the ways of death are the end of it afterward.” (Prov. 16:25) Many of the heartbreaks and much bitterness can be avoided by people who are willing to follow this advice and to benefit from the experience of others.