Published: Thursday - April 17, 2008
Words by Nicole Perrino
Follow Your Dreams Photo: Paulo Coelho
Some people say I'm too ambitious. I just say they aren't aware of how many opportunities there are out there. I get frustrated when I see people just settling, not pushing for more, because there is always more. And my overly ambitious ass is out to find it.
I think the schools got it wrong. They stand in the front of the class and tell you that you can be whatever you want to be. They make it seem easy. Then real life slaps certain people in the face and they think it's bullsh**. Then they give up. People need individual guidance because the same plan doesn't work for everyone. It's like what happened to that little kid I knew telling everyone he was going to be a doctor or a lawyer? He's stuck working a sh**ty job because he has too much to lose if he quits and tries something new.
Being young and ambitious seems cool to most, but to some old school heads, it makes us look confused. They think you should pick something and stick to it and that's it. Work your way up. I see it as I'm still young, I have time to find my passion and I might as well suffer now for a short while, then for the rest of my life doing something I hate. I've dipped my feet into several things. I'm a writer and a criminal justice major. I've taken a year off to explore fashion design, spent $400 dollars on a bartending course that I did nothing with. But I can make one hell of a drink when my friends come over. I almost dropped out of college to go to cosmetology school. I don't think changing my mind 20 times held me back at all. Anything you learn can be applied to life in some way. So if you're in the position to play around a little bit, do it. If you feel you aren't, trust me, you can find a way.
Networking is huge in my book. Networking helps in times when even education can't. That ladder we're supposed to be climbing has no end. It just keeps going and there's always room for advancement. Stuck in a retail job? Print up some business cards and sell yourself as a personal shopper. There is always more. Always.
My theory about suffering now rather than later has helped me get through a lot. Perhaps it's because I'm impatient that this works for me. When I have an idea, I drop everything I'm doing to pursue it. I don't put it off until the idea just disintegrates. If you're making only 30g a year now, and you're putting off going back to school, think about how much harder it will be when you finally get a raise. You really won't want to cut those hours. You might as well do it now.
Maybe I see sh** differently because I've lived in both worlds. I've had the mom who bought me whatever I wanted, threw 20s at me for lunch at school everyday. I've also waited for hours at the welfare office, waiting to give proof to my case worker that my ass doesn't make too much to receive food stamps. I've lived in a house all my friends called the castle with stone on the outside and beautiful wood floors and I've had to fight off roaches and mice. I guess having been in both positions; I'm aware of the good life but also aware of how easily it can be taken away.
Even if you're not ready to let go of your stability, just remember there is always room for more. Don't lose touch with that dream. That dream is yours and it will ride with you on the passenger side no matter what. And who knows, maybe one day, if you keep pursuing it, it will be the one driving.
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