bust the myth and choose what matters to you

Dane Copeland
May 23
3 min read

Updated: May 24

It's time to step away from the "passion project" myth and lean into what matters to you. In a world filled with access to information on almost any topic, whether you Google, jump down a Wikipedia rabbit hole, or crowdsource, it's easy to understand why high school students and families fall prey to the notion of creating a "passion project," especially as students head into junior year. While spotlighting current and potentially ongoing interests can be compelling, thought-provoking, and ultimately meaningful, it also runs the risk of being highly transparent and transactional, which suggests that the sole purpose is to help a student get into college. And guess what? Admissions officers are experts at identifying the difference between a fabricated project and genuine interest.

Exploring, pursuing, or creating something that matters to you is most genuine when it comes from the heart, is self-directed, and potentially can lead to a positive impact, whether that helps others or results in self-reflective growth. Self-directed projects can be as simple as creating a book list to read on a particular topic by specific authors - or volunteering at one organization every week with an ongoing commitment. The time away from school is yours to claim.

Summer is often the perfect time to "MacGyver" a problem or develop an interest. It does require thinking about how your abilities and skills align with what you want to achieve and what you might need to work on, e.g., independent time management or follow-through skills to ensure success. Building life skills in itself can be a self-directed project. Becoming the family chef and managing groceries and weekly meals can be tasty and appreciated by your family.

This does not mean you must rule out any opportunity to volunteer or intern in a lab, a family friend's business, or start a side hustle. But before you jump into something, you want plenty of time to brainstorm how it fits you, your aspirations, and what will be required. Meaningful projects, activities, or experiences often require a lot of time on the investing and building side and the long-term commitment needed to be successful.

It may feel hard to think about the first day of summer or plan out the week when you're in the thick of finishing the school year, but why not?

Ensuring you have the right mix of activities and time to explore, rejuvenate, and stretch can require a little upfront planning, but it may take less than 30 minutes to generate a list and be ready to take action to implement what you will do.

1. Brainstorm and jot down a mini-list of the top five things you want to do or try, including key info, such as whether there is an application, requirements, and deadlines.

2. Organize your mini-list by what is time-sensitive or has a hard deadline.

3. Assign a day and time to tackle your top five, whether completing an application (and submitting it), sending an email with questions, or talking with your family about your summer availability. And yes, you want to coordinate with your family to know about family commitments and vacations.

Your top five list might be ongoing activities or require follow-up attention, and that's okay because you can build on this strategy with dedicated time (#3) for tackling them. The time away from school can be ideal for stepping into something new and finding your new favorite thing—time to say "yes" to the things that matter to you.

Looking for more tips and inspiration to help you start your college journey? dream.search.apply.A Field Guide for an Inspired College Journey is packed with insights and resources to help you navigate your college path, and is available to order online and coming soon to your local bookstore.