Call Me Crazy But I'm Thinking Of Doing A Drastic Thing
Decorating By nglez09 Updated 21 Jan 2016 , 4:48pm by hearsay
I get to that point when I'm getting burnt out. I did want to do that before I got married and wish I would have. I would love to do that now, but with a little one I think it is better to be stable. I also have regrets of not getting a degree too. I just didn't know what I wanted back then and now don't have the time to get it. I think if you can finish your degree and save money while doing it then go traveling and learn hands on is the best of both worlds and you have no regrets b/c you have your degree and the experience of a lifetime. Just my opinion.
Not many people regret getting a Bachelor's degree. They might have second thoughts about what they studied, but at least they have the paper that says they started and finished something big and difficult. No one says you have to stay in school for 3 more years after that and get a JD. Or do they? Something makes me suspect you have pressure (parents?) to go to law school. Which makes me wonder, how are you paying for college right now? Will that money still be there in a year or two if you want to go back?
Have you ever worked in a restaurant or bakery? If not, I suggest you do that this summer with plans to go back to college in the fall. After your first year of college it's normal to be burned out and looking for escape plans! That doesn't mean you have to quit. Employers may not care much about what your degree is in, but it is to your credit if you finish. No offense to those who didn't, but a year or two of college looks flakey to a lot of people doing white collar hiring.
Study business, or Art History, anything that turns you on. One can go to law school with any sort of BA (or BS), so you can still pursue that if you want to. Maybe you make a deal to take a year off after your Bachelor's and explore culinary options. Most people don't know what they want to do when they're twenty and even if they think they do, it changes when they're thirty and forty...
Stick it out in school and bake for your friends. The days of one career for one's entire life are over.
Something I just thought of...
I think the one thing you need to decide isn't whether you should get a college degree or not. It's what should you get it in! Everyone must have a college degree as anymore it is the equivalence of a GED. If you get your culinary degree, you severely limit yourself as to what you can do! Europe will always be there and you can always do a semester abroad. You have tons of options.
Everyone hits a panic time during school when you wonder "Is this REALLY what I want to do for the rest of my life?" I guarantee you no matter what you choose (culinary or not) you will hate it at some point in your life.
I'm 26. I did high school, straight to college, straight to grad school. By grad school, burn-out doesn't even cover what I went through. Hell is more like it and I hated every single day I was in it BUT it did get me into a city where I could get a job (only city in the world, BTW) doing chemistry but never having to work in the lab (the part I didn't like). I basically have the most cushioned chemistry job of any chemist and love it (when I can survive the boredom!). Now I do cakes on the side but I use that as an outlet because that's something fun that I don't want to turn full-time because I will soon not enjoy it.
I went to University for one year after high school. I had no idea what I wanted to do and I hated every minute of it. I ended up failing almost all of my classes because my heart was just not in it. I ended up getting a really good paying job with an airline, was able to travel quite a bit. I got married as well. I worked with the airline for 4 years, got laid off, then started up at a call center (there everywhere in my city).
Anyway.. here I am, now 26 years old, with a job I absolutely detest and no education to get me something better. That being said, I decided last summer to look into Nursing. I thought long and hard about it and applied for this Sept. (I find out in a month if I ket in or not.. keep your fingers crossed!).
The point to all this is it took me 8 years after graduating high school to finally figure out what it is I want to do with my life. It certainly would've been so much easier had I figured this out earlier, however I looked at it like what is the point in wasting thousands of dollars on a degree I do not want... It will be a huge struggle going down to one income when I go back to school, what with the mortgage and bills.. but in the long run, it's what I want. So my advise would be to really think long and hard. I remember a post from you not long ago wanting to get rid of all your cake stuff. If you are changing your mind that drastically about cakes, I definately would try sitting on an idea until one just clicks.
Sweetheart, you are still a teenager! The frontal lobe of your brain won't even be completely developed until you are around 20 - 21. This is the area of the brain that controls impulsivness (among other things). No matter how much you love cake decorating, I would highly recommend that you DO NOT quit college. You say you are a 'all or none' kind of person. Then go all out and finish your degree. If law school isn't cutting it for you, then don't go that route. Choose something that you enjoy but something that you can actually GET A JOB in and pay the bills. After college, go to Europe if you can. Take a few months and see all you'd like to see. Try to get on with a great pastry chef if you can. You may very well see the world through different eyes by that time.
Good luck to you!
My opinion.....if youre heart is not in your "profession" and you have the option to do what you love....then you should go for it.
I worked with special needs children for ten years and loved it but I also got really burned out...its my degree, all my experience, but no longer my passion.
I quit and moved on...started my own small at home business and successful but more importantly happy.
I always say, If you got hit by a bus right now, would you die happy? No? Then do what makes you happy and everything else will come in time...
Life gets in the way. It is really much harder to go back to school once you've got a job and spouse and family. School first, Europe next.
I'm going to disagree with you Leah. It is ALOT harder once you have a spouse and a family to travel and go to France and learn from a master chef (or whatever). School can really be done at any time, although with a family and job it is just a harder balancing act.
Not many people regret getting a Bachelor's degree. They might have second thoughts about what they studied, but at least they have the paper that says they started and finished something big and difficult. No one says you have to stay in school for 3 more years after that and get a JD. Or do they? Something makes me suspect you have pressure (parents?) to go to law school. Which makes me wonder, how are you paying for college right now? Will that money still be there in a year or two if you want to go back?
Have you ever worked in a restaurant or bakery? If not, I suggest you do that this summer with plans to go back to college in the fall. After your first year of college it's normal to be burned out and looking for escape plans! That doesn't mean you have to quit. Employers may not care much about what your degree is in, but it is to your credit if you finish. No offense to those who didn't, but a year or two of college looks flakey to a lot of people doing white collar hiring.
Study business, or Art History, anything that turns you on. One can go to law school with any sort of BA (or BS), so you can still pursue that if you want to. Maybe you make a deal to take a year off after your Bachelor's and explore culinary options. Most people don't know what they want to do when they're twenty and even if they think they do, it changes when they're thirty and forty...
Stick it out in school and bake for your friends. The days of one career for one's entire life are over.
Iâm with Zombiecakes, take the summer off and work in a restaurant or bakery and see if you like the environment. If you really love the work, your decision will be made. If you hate the work your can reevaluate your options.
PS: I know this may sound materialistic, but have you researched the salaries for the different professions?
Baker: http://www.indeed.com/salary/Baker.html
Chef: http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=chef&l1=
Programmer: http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=Programmer&l1=
Nurse: http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=registered+nurse&l1=
Lawyer: http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=lawyer&l1=
Engineer: http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=reservoir+engineer&l1=
Physician: http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=physician&l1=
I donât know if the salaries are accurate, but it is great just to get comparisons.
I would also love to know what you finally decided to do, OP, and how things worked out. It would be great to see an update.
Finish what you started!
You can go to France while you are on break from school….as for being "tied down" with a spouse and kids…don't' marry until you have done the other things you want to do, or do them with the love of your life before having kids! Here in Boston most people don't marry until they are in their 30's. I was 35 and had done everything…world travel, many awesome jobs, living in the city e.t.c. So now that I have a child and husband, I don't feel like I missed anything. You will never regret getting a college degree, even if you don't realize it. You may regret having to pay for it, but it will be a tool in your arsenal.
If you are still in your first year of college you are so far away from law school it's not even on the horizon. Not many people I know actually are doing what they went to school for but none regret finishing school. I went to college, and law school and travelled around Europe. I wouldn't assume that you will be able to just hook up with a good culinary school in Europe either, they are most likely just as competitlve to get into as the top colleges in this country. Do you speak the language fluently? Do you have any relevant experience that they might be interested in? Sounds like a good idea but is it a practical one? Practical may sound boring but you will need a fall back position where you can get a job and earn a living. It's easy to say follow your dream but you can't eat dreams or pay the mortgage with dreams
It's not a bad thing to take some time off from school and think about what you want to do. Most small businesses fail because the people running them don't know what they are doing. If you truly want to run your own shop, give up pre-law and take business courses.
France will still be there in three years when you finish school
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