GETTING MORE FROM LESS: CONTINUOUS ASCENSION (PART II)

Continuing…

Chapter 2 – Spring 2018:

At 19 years old, I was basically making my age per hour. When the minimum wage was $13. As a freshman. In my second semester of college. Working an enriching job for a non-profit law firm. With no bills to pay. With no “real responsibility” other than myself. For even more growth, I joined a club on campus that enabled me to learn more about business and gave me the opportunity to network with people more experienced and knowledgeable than myself. My lifestyle defied the “broke college student” stereotype as I lived lavish, confined within no walls, eating out wherever I wanted as much as I wanted just because I can afford to. I even bought a Versace sweatshirt. I was coasting through 16 units of five classes. Despite all of this, I didn’t feel satisfied. I thought to myself: “if I can make this much at this point in my life, how much would I be worth when I’m more experienced and wiser? and if I can handle this much work, how much more can I handle?” After a week of working at my new job, I received more good news, being extended an offer to become a resident advisor for the upcoming school year. So many good things happened within a month of celebrating my 19th birthday. My head could’ve blown up. Walk It Talk It by the Migos became a staple in my daily music. Fortunately, despite everything seemingly going great, one thing didn’t, keeping me grounded. It was as if life decided to impose its will to maintain the balance of good and not-so-good, teaching me that I can’t have everything that I want. From there, the rest of the spring went well. I kept maturing and evolving, always trying to become a better version of myself. I started reading books. I got into classical music. I cut off “time-wasters” like video games. I even started watching movies, shows, and videos at 2x speed. My immediate future was something I looked forward to as I had the Fall of 2018 and Spring 2019, job wise, planned out. Again, I wasn’t satisfied. I started looking for more ways to challenge myself and make my life harder. With registration for classes around the corner, I decided that I will graduate in three years. Hence, I signed up for 24 units to take in the Fall comprising of eight classes, six upper division Psychology classes, then a business and chemistry class. With only the summer of 2018 empty, I looked for summer internships and came across an enticing one: financial advising. I applied and two interviews later, I received an offer. Now, my summer of 2018 is also booked. Excited would be an understatement to describe how I felt.

Chapter 3 – Summer 2018:

For the first time in my life, my future is clear as I’m crafting the path I want to take to get to where I want to be. On the first meeting of my internship over the summer, the director of the program told us that we were the 30 selected out of about 5,000 applicants for the summer class, a number I found flattering despite having no possible way of verifying. I was the youngest and the only non-business related major. Financial advising at 19 was tough as most people didn’t understand what I did. Nonetheless, I consider it a success as I learned plenty that I am now applying and will apply to my life. The financial rewards that translated to a four-day-trip to Disneyland, a $400 steak dinner for my girlfriend and I, and enough money to live off of two semesters was also a nice bonus. To keep my brain stimulated, I also took two summer classes just for the sake of continuous learning. I craved more. I couldn’t wait for Fall to start.

Chapter 4 – Fall 2018:

Coming off a rewarding spring and summer, I thought I didn’t need to get another job yet. Though I craved more, I also knew enough to take time and see how I will perform with my new self-imposed workload. I thought I can get adjusted with my new responsibilities as a resident advisor first, as well as focus on my eight classes, the most I’ve ever taken in my life, before taking on anything else. During this time, I got to meet and form relationships with plenty of great and interesting people, most of whom I hope are reading this right now as I assume they would. My girlfriend, at this point, have fully convinced me to become a psychiatrist instead of a psychologist, a suggestion I first took under advisement last spring. When the time came to register for classes, I knew I had to take science classes to fulfill some pre-med requirements. As a Psychology major, my options were very limited. I enrolled into Physics and, surprisingly, Organic Chemistry. The fall semester offered proof that I can handle more responsibilities as I received excellent feedback on my performance review as a resident advisor and split my classes with 4 As and 4 Bs. As a result, I couldn’t wait for the new challenges that spring will bring. 

Chapter 5 – Coming Soon