This week, I share the second and last part of our bonus episodes with Dr. Sebastian Vallejo Vera on higher education, and this time, we go tactical. In this shorter episode, we discuss the advice that we wished we had known back in the day when we apply for graduate school, and that we hope others know now.
Interestingly, this week is also a sentimental one for me. 12 years ago yesterday, I arrived in the U.S. to start my own graduate school journey. Sharing this episode with a dear friend on the ride we went through together back then hits in a special way, to be frank. If you are considering graduate school, or early on in your experience, I highly recommend that you give this episode a listen.
But again, some of us are either well past that time, or not interested in it at all, and as always, there is still something here for you. Hear (read!) me out:
I share often that the reason why I pursued graduate school was not an academic career. Back then, I did not even know if I would like pursuing one. But I wanted to give myself options that aligned with what I had in mind: an international career living abroad, learning and writing as a core pillar of my work, a financial foundation to continue growing personally and professionally, and so on. In my eyes, graduate school was about raising the ceiling of what was possible for me as a first-generation college graduate whose career was already very different from any other she had seen represented around her.
In my mind, it went like this: “If I pursue a graduate degree, I will find my way into a career I love.”
So far, it has worked out close enough, except that it was not just the graduate degree that has allowed for that (remember our last reflection, when I asked about the power we might give away?). In fact, what has been life changing for me at every turn has been my willingness to set this lineal-thinking mantra as the first step, but not the whole roadmap. Because if I read that statement with an eye on the graduate degree, I run the risk of taking myself out of the equation, losing sight of the gifts that help me craft my career beyond the one goal. The truth is we all do that often.
Today, I invite you to consider where you might be doing that. What is one area of your life where you say to yourself: “If I do/reach/become [this], then I am/achieve/become [that].”? Most importantly, how are you making sure that this statement can be a guide without losing sight of who you are, what you bring with you, and what vision drives you?
I look forward to hearing what the episode and these questions spark for you, so reply back to share. You can also comment on our Patreon, where I just shared our behind-the-scenes updates for this month, and we have a live chat coming up.
Looking forward to seeing you there, and here in a couple of weeks,