--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Harris, F. S. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 24 number: 2 published: 1920-12 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Harris, F. S., "The Young Man’s Greatest Problem," *Improvement Era* 24, no. 2 (December 1920): 168–169.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2402unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2402unse start_page: 168 end_page: 169 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1920-12) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2402unse publication_year: 1920 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1920, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # The Young Man’s Greatest Problem The Young Man's Greatest Problem By Dr. F. S. Harris, Director of tlie Utah Agricultural Experiment Station The desire of every young man to make the most of his life keeps him in constant hot water during his early years of maturity. Part of this time he is probably so anxious to be agreeable to the young ladies that he does not take time for very serious reflection, but, during moments of seriousness, he is likely to worry about what he is going to do in life for a living. The thing that is needed is not worry, but good, sound think- ing, guided by some one of experience. Aside from the choosing of a companion for life, no other problem is so vital to the future welfare of a young man as the selection of a suitable vocation, and the preparation for it. Not- withstanding the importance of this problem, the average youth is likely to consider it only in a superficial manner; and, after a little worrying, he will probably slip into the occupation that seems easiest to enter at the time he is married and has thrust upon him the responsibility of making a living. A real serious study of the best vocation for him, and an adequate preparation for the work of his choice, is not made nearly as often as it should be. The problem is a real one for every young man, but only a few of them set themselves vigorously to its solu- tion. Many, student-like, are satisfied to go to the class unpre- pared and wait for the solution till they reach the end of the book of life where the answers are recorded. Parents of the West, with its boundless natural resources and its abundant opportunities, are not likely to be so concerned over the vocations of their sons as are parents in the older parts of the world. They see all about them men who have been suc- cessful in making a good living for their families, even though they were uneducated and untrained for any particular kind of work. It must be remembered, however, that conditions found in pioneer days do not now hold. Then land could be had for the taking and free public range was found on every hand. In- dustries had not been developed and competition was almost unknown. Today the best land has been taken, and a young man has difficulty in getting a farm unless he has capital. Com- petition in the various industrial lines is keen and the untrained young man without capital must work with his hands in com- petition with foreign labor whose standards of living are so low, and whose material requirements are so few, that the son of THE YOUNG MAN'S GREATEST PROBLEM 169 the pioneer finds great difficulty in meeting the competition. Parents must be aroused to the situation. Their sons must riot be allowed to become mere hewers of wood and drawers of water, just because they do not properly understand modern conditions. It is not right that the pioneers of the West should have endured all the hardships incident to the settlement of a new country only to see their sons occupy second rate positions, while the better positions are filled by those who must be brought in from outside, because of their training. The only way to avoid this is for parents to wake up to the situation and encourage their sons to prepare themselves for modern indus- trial demands. One of the saddest things in the world is the sight of a young man wandering aimlessly through life with no definite occupation, hoping that some day he will stumble into a soft snap that will solve the question of making a living. The work he is doing probably came to him by chance and he will con- tinue doing the same thing till chance turns him in some other direction. He is in no sense master of himself or his destiny, but drifts about like a piece of bark tossed from wave to wave on the high seas. Man was placed on earth to subdue it, and he should have sufficient force of character to determine what part he will play in the world's work. If he does not act for himself and develop initiative of his own, he is no better than the beasts of burden. The misfits that are so common in the industrial world are usually due to the fact that sufficient attention was not given to the choice of a vocation. The reason why many men do not like to work is that they are trying to do the wrong thing. They are square pegs in round holes. The economic waste in the world due to this cause is simply appalling. How important is it, therefore, for the welfare of mankind, that all forces join in helping young men to choose the work for which they are by nature and circumstances adapted. Parents who are wise and who have the welfare of their sons at heart will do all they can to make them industrially in- dependent. This can be done best, not by leaving money to them, but by helping them to find the work in which they can succeed best, and then assisting them to be so well prepared for their vocation that they can meet any competition. Young men should realize that the great problem before them, during their mutual-improvement-association age, is the preparation for their life's work. They should decide what they are going to do, and then set about doing it. It is nothing short of a tragedy to waste the most valuable years of their lives be- cause they cannot make up their minds to something definite. Logan, Utah