How It Started
In the Fall of 2014, I decided to go back to school, 20 years after graduating from high school.
A year later, my cousin decided to go back to finish his degree, after a 15+ year hiatus.
In 2017, one of my best friends went for her AAS, and the same year, my oldest sister started towards her bachelor’s.
My cousin & I graduated summa cum laude last Spring. My best friend graduated in August & my sister graduated last week.
How It’s Going
After I graduated from App State University (go Mountaineers), I was in a better position to earn a valuable professional certificate for a role I have been doing for a decade. One year ago today, I earned that certification! In March, I started a new job that doubled my salary and using the additional income, as of Dec 1st, I have paid off $16,558.83 in debt (car/student loan). Other than the mortgage, I am debt-free. Now, I can funnel that money into charity, investments, better experiences, and my own business.
My cousin started a new personal courier service, using the knowledge he gained from the business logistics classes he had to take while in school. It is already very promising!
My best friend recently applied for a leadership/supervisory role with her current company. It would mean a 25% salary bump. Guess what? She got it! She is currently considering getting a bachelor’s degree.
Right before finishing her classes, my sister was promoted to a management position in the company she’s been with for 20+ years & no longer has to work 12 hr days on her feet. She plans to get a Master’s next.
How We Did It
We are all parents. We all work full-time. We are spouses & run households, had surgeries & lost parents along the way. We don’t have a ton of money. Some of us started part-time & paid out of pocket, had work tuition reimbursement plans, took advantage of affordable distant learning programs and used federal loans/grants as needed.
Some nights, I was in tears at 1 am, trying to finish homework, wanting to quit, but I did not want to let myself down. I had people rooting for me, following me, and a husband sacrificing with me. No vacation between 2015–2020 was w/o my books, homework, or checking time zones to avoid missing east coast deadlines. If I gave up, maybe they would too. If I gave up, I wouldn’t have a story that could encourage others.
People ask how I did it, how we did it. It was not easy! There are no f’ing shortcuts! No hacks, secrets, or one simple trick to completing a worthy goal. Some people make a great living enthusiastically telling that us those lies, right?! So when I outline the tedious groundwork to get started, the slow grinding path and the discipline it takes, people begin to back away. There’s no luster in the details. They were expecting to hear about a shortcut, a hack.
After learning there aren’t any, they begin to make excuses. No time. No money. No support. Claims their situation is different from mine so it wouldn’t work for them. What?! Hard, smart work works for everyone! Time passes nonetheless. Nothing was looming that was going to give me more money later. If necessary, I would cheerlead myself!
The bottom line is many people want my results but they don’t want to do the work to get them!
Whether your goal is going to school or achieving weight loss or improved relationships, you can do it if you truly want to! If it is important enough to you, if your why is strong enough, you will overcome your own excuses and do the gritty, demanding work and get the amazing feeling of accomplishment and pride when the benefits manifest into tangible positive changes for your life and the lives of those you love!
If you are interested in hearing the details of how to get started, I’ll happily tell you, absolutely free. Just ask.
