First blog post of the semester

 

1.     Who are you grateful for who has helped you get to where you are today? (What was your situation? how did they help you? How did that help impact you in the moment and how has it led to where you are today? If you have a picture you'd like to share please do so with their permission.)

I am grateful for my mother who encouraged me to follow my interests with a biology degree instead of pursuing an accounting degree, which she knew would lead to my eventual displeasure. I had just decided to leave my job as a retail store manager and come back to school, I had everything figured out. I told my mother that I would be going back to school for accounting, and she asked me why I didn’t go for something that would interest me more, I ended up changing my major to biology after that. The simple question she asked helped me to reevaluate why I was going back to school, and to understand that if I was going to take the risk of going back to school, it may as well be for something that adds value, not just money, to my life. My resulting decision to pursue a degree in biology has allowed me to stay true to the person I am, because I am truly interested in what I am learning and doing, whereas pursuing a degree in accounting would have been in direct conflict to my interests and personality.

2.     Advice that you would give to your younger self? (What were you doing at the time? What was the advice? Why did your younger self need advice? Are there other people who would benefit from this advice?)

I really don’t think that I would give my younger self advice. The young me never listened to the advice of others, so I know that it would be a waste of breath to try. I guess if anything, I would encourage my younger self to be more confident. Confidence has always been the area where the young and old(er) versions of myself struggle.