Days Until 20

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Keep Your Plans to Yourself

I just got back from lunch with an older friend of mine.

He gave me a call earlier today. 

We've known eachother since highschool, and I rented a room from his parents after I hastily decided to move out of my parent's house after graduation at 18.

We meet at a Taco Bell (my stomach is still churning from that processed "food" I allowed into my body).

He asks what I'm doing now.

"I've actually started doing some freelance writing," I say rather excitedly.

Shocked, he replies "you need a degree for that!"

"No, you don't," I assure him."I'm doing just fine without one." 

"Well, you need to get one. It will make you more hire-able." He grins at me, pleased with his argument.

I change the subject. I don't want to hear anymore. 

Wanna know the sad part?

This is how most of my conversations end up.

When I ever dare to disclose how I personally feel about jobs, careers, and most post-secondary schooling to my peers, I am always met with confused looks and panicked outrage: 

"But you NEED to go to college! How else are you going to get a good job?"

"You don't WANT a job? How else are you going make money?"

Most people's reality is so narrow that they cannot even imagine doing anything else other than what they were taught in school - busywork.

If ever I attempt to explain another way to make money, it's as if I am speaking a foreign language. My friend at Taco Bell was a bit more enlightened. At least he knew what freelancing was.

Keep your plans to yourself.

99.9 percent of the time you will be disappointed in people's to them reactions.  

Nobody is going to congratulate you on trying to make your own way.

You will be met with endless doubts and arguments on why your plans won't work. This can only discourage you, esepecially when it comes from close friends and family members.

The best thing to do is to just shut up and execute.




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