I recently turned 25 and have been feeling this urgency to figure out what I want to do with my life. I quit my job and moved back in with my parents, thinking of it as a clean slate and telling myself I would now have the time and energy to explore my options and take action. It’s been about a month now and I’ve gone back and forth between feeling really excited, free and ready for an adventure, to feeing really discouraged, anxious and overwhelmed. I feel great about using this time to relax and enjoy spending time with family and friends until I remind myself that I don’t have a plan, or even a plan for when or how I’m going to make a plan. Then I feel overwhelmed with anxiety. There are so many possibilities, making a decision about what to do next feels impossible. I know I could just get another job and sign a new lease and live a life similar to how I was living before, but I also know that I don’t want that. I’m afraid I’m wasting this time where I have few commitments holding me back from taking a leap of faith and really following my dreams. At the same time, I think I’m so afraid of making the wrong decision and of failing that I’m frozen in this feeling of overwhelm, which is preventing me from deciding which dream to follow.

I’m having a hard time filling out a model for this and would love some guidance. I’m having a lot of thoughts that I think would be worth taking a closer look at but I think the thought “I don’t know what to do” is one that I’m really struggling with.

C – I’m 25, single with no pets, no rent to pay, no debt, very few bills, about 10,000 dollars in my savings account and no job requiring my time.
T – I don’t know what to do.
F – Pressure, overwhelm
A – I take a lot of passive action: making lists, writing out goals, searching for motivation in self help books, etc. I avoid making decisions. I second guess every decision I do make. I “talk things through” with others and ask for advice. I buffer by scrolling on social media, eating, and walking around aimlessly.
R – I put pressure on myself to make a decision and continue to feel overwhelmed by the thought of taking massive action.