School Daze

School was never my thing.

Ah, August is in the air. Back To School ads are everwhere. And that smell of book bags, new lunch boxes, and fresh supplies still haunts me.

I searched for an appropriate picture of me graduating—or ANY picture I could find in a school setting—for this post and I guess it’s just proof that I never wanted to be seen there..or have any memories whatsoever.

I slacked off my first couple years of high school and then only worked my butt off to make up for it so I could get the appropriate GPA to skip my junior year and graduate early.

I tried that college thing—at 4 separate schools—just to find out that it wasn’t for me either. The first 2 years were a joke. And then the 3rd year I finally got my act together when I realized that my parent’s would stop hounding me if I at least got an associate’s with a decent GPA. Goal established. So business associates it was—dean’s list, honor roll, 4.0..whatever, I did it. Done.

My whole life it seems I’ve always been motivated by being told “no” or figuring out ways around doing things I didn’t want to do. Sounds childish, sure, but it is what it is.

When my high school counselor told me there was NO way I’d be able to skip a grade because my GPA was too low, I immediately put up my blinders and got to work. Showed her.

When my parents told me that I couldn’t move to Vegas without some sort of degree and an excellent GPA, I sat down and got to work.

When I graduated college and was told that I’d have to use that degree to go get a “big girl job” and work hard toward someone else’s dream—well, I found my way around that one too.

I think part of discovering you who are is revealing what motivates you. The partial key to your future is finding out what it is your passionate (or NOT passionate about). I never knew what I wanted to do—which is what made school so difficult—but I did know what I DIDN’T want to do so I landed my dream job—that I didn’t know I had—just by finding ways around doing things I didn’t want to do.

What’s my point? I’m not entirely sure. I guess I’m saying if what you’re doing right now doesn’t make you happy, then what are you doing? And why? College is cool and all—I got that piece of paper—but on the other side of things I’m realizing that I could have done everything the same without it. I don’t think you need a piece of paper to define you and what you are capable of. So, if you don’t have it, stop using it as an excuse and just get to work.