Tuesday 15 March 2016

I WASTED MY TIME IN THE UNIVERSITY!



When I graduated from the University with a degree in Biological Sciences, my plan was to proceed to medical school to become a doctor. I remember specifically telling my parents that I would specialize in cardiology. I seemed to have a thing for the human heart...lol. I wrote the prerequisite MCAT examination as is required in the U.S.A and even applied to a ...couple of Medical schools.

But then one day, my heart asked my head: "Is this really your life's dream?" As I couldn't answer a definitive "Yes" to that question, I lay that plan aside accepting that this wasn't my life's path. My wanting to study medicine was linked to the fact that I was good in sciences in high school so I just assumed medicine was an appropriate career choice. It's funny how in life we often think we know what is best for us, but usually what we think is best isn't what we need.

I have no doubt I would have been a good doctor...I had the intellectual capability, and the sight of blood and needles didn't freak me out. Phew! However, I know for a fact that I wouldn't have been a fulfilled person. You see, fulfillment has nothing to do with what degree you hold or the job you have. Most of the people whose names have gone down in history for their ingenuity and accomplishments in different walks life never sat within the four walls of any University, some don't have a degree to their name. Probably because they didn't find a course of study that ignited passion in them.

That's where PURPOSE comes in. Fulfillment, true lasting fulfillment, comes from discovering and working your life's purpose. You see, everyone on earth was born for a specific reason, in fact the psalmist captured this so aptly in Psalm 139:16. Our days were fashioned, written out, before we came into existence. We were created on purpose for a purpose and until we discover what that purpose is, we'll just keep chasing shadows.

I strongly believe that a University degree or certificate is of no use if it doesn't help you fulfill your purpose. I hold a Bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences, but I believe my University years were a waste because I didn't study what I was really passionate about. I'm not even using the knowledge of the human body I gained, in fulfilling my own purpose. I love coaching and counseling people, mentoring them as they journey through life, and helping them work their relationships. A couple of years ago, I realized that I should have studied Psychology, not Biology. I took quite a few psychology courses in school and boy did they fascinate me! Sure its not too late for me to get a second degree or so, but imagine how much I would have already achieved if I had done so when I enrolled in University. Also, I can't get back those years nor the money that was spent on my education, right? LOL.

Why am I making all this noise?

Well, I wouldn't want any of you to walk the same path I did. I wouldn't want you to spend four, five or more years in school doing something that will not be beneficial to you in your life's journey. I wouldn't want you to waste precious years...time is money.

I want you to discover your passion so you know how and where to channel your education goals. Your goal shouldn't be just to have a degree because everyone else does. Your goal should be to develop what natural ability is in you.

The Nigerian society has been lagging behind because we place value on people based on their educational background. We fail to understand that some people are born to be farmers, artists, singers, models, fashion designers, bakers, beauticians, barbers, hair dressers, photographers, interior designers, event planners, speakers etc and to be excellent at what they're doing. Not everyone must be an engineer, a doctor, a lawyer, an accountant etc. Some are even born to create a path that never existed, to carve a niche for themselves...enter Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg.

I wouldn't want you to fit yourself into a box.
I want you to live a fulfilled, purposeful life.
I want you to spend it doing what you love, what you were born to do.

You only live once, you only have one chance on this earth before you exit. Make it count.

Break the mold. And believe that God will bless what He has put in you.

But start by asking yourself: "What do I love doing?"
© Koko Wanjiru Davids 2016

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