I find myself fast approaching the one year anniversary of the start of all the big changes I've made in my life.
That year has just flown by! I have really enjoyed the journey and I must say I haven't ended up where I thought I was going at all.
My little camper is still in NJ waiting to be reconstructed. I have yet to take my guys on an actual camping trip, but we did start hiking. This summer was way to hot to go but we will continue in the fall once the weather cools back down. It was something we really enjoyed doing.
I originally had gone to work at a local fast food restaurant as a part-time gig while I lived off my 401 K. Except it turned into a full-time job while I wasn't looking. I did find I liked and felt better on a second shift (2-10) and not a typical 9-5 schedule.
I let for awhile and took a spin at what was my dream job once upon a time. I stayed for a few months but I found it wasn't what I had thought it was and left to go back to the world of fast food. I was so happy for the experience though and all the wonderful people I met while I was there.
This job started my journey into education. I originally wanted to get into Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine. Upon researching I found you needed 60 college credits to attend the school. I have no college credits.
A good friend of mine was going to school online the past two years and after talking to her I decided to take the plunge. I researched schools and picked Penn State World Campus because it was voted as one of the best online schools around. Plus when I graduate I get to walk with my class. To me that's really cool!
I chose the field of Psychology because I have always enjoyed it and mental health has been something I have been an advocate of for some time now. So I signed up in June to start my journey as a college student at the age of 48! To me this is very exciting. I will be the first person in my immediate family to go to college.
I've also decided to pursue a management career in fast food while I attend college so I am taking a few classes with my company to climb that ladder as well.
In the meantime the bills still have to get paid and trying to live on $9 an hour after making $20 an hour is a pretty big change. So I've taken a second job at Jockey for the holiday season. Both jobs are really great and I enjoy working at them.
I am amazed that even with all of this going on, I still feel so much better than I did while working the one job that just was such a negative environment. I am really surprised how much better a happier work place is for you mentally to be in.
So it's a year later and I still have no regrets about the changes I've made in my life. Do I miss the money? You bet I do! I don't miss the stress or the feeling of low self-worth though and no one can put a price on that!
Have you made any recent changes in your life big or small?