Or he could have the problem like I do... I am older and STILL don't know what I want to do, it is because some people have a different outlook. I could see myself doing all kinds of things, what troubles me would be the very thing you mention, "spend the rest of your life doing"... that sounds horrifying to me. A long term job in the same field or career is just uninteresting to me. There is absolutely nothing I would want to do that long, so if that is the case for you OP, and it is for me... I would work on getting the most flexible skillset possible, and try not to get into too much debt for it. That is why I decided against grad school, as I didn't want to be pigeon holed.
i.e., i like writing...but I like writing about different subjects. I like programming, but I wouldn't want to work on the same application for too long. I like politics, but issues change too frequently so I would want constantly changing subject matter. I even get bored living some place too long and since school have lived in 5 diff places both inside and outside of the country, I'm 30.
Being intelligent doesn't mean being an expert in a narrow field.
The downside is, you won't have the "security" or "career climbing" that some people are interested in, but the upside is that you have a lot more life flexibility. You can position yourself as a consultant, or outside SME. You will of course have to network more, so if you are an introvert you might have to force yourself to get out there sometimes. But, I think the benefits could be worth it.
I work as an IT consultant and I am able to take contract jobs and gigs, I am also politically active and do work for 4 different NFP's as an advisor, I also do freelance journalism. In UG I did CompSci/PoliSci
I mean I didn't initially have that idea, it kind of just evolved as I went out into the real world. I played the corporate game for a few years, then I decided I did not want to work for anybody.
I know others don't see it that way, but there is nothing wrong with viewing life like that...
fwiw...
