Hey guys! So, one day, I woke up and thought, “I want to go back to school and finish my graduate degree.” Yep, even though I already have a full-time job. Crazy, right? I even decided to take not one, not two, but three courses each week. Oh, and I managed to pass two big CMA exams in just four months. So, how did I pull this off?
First things first, I had to sort out my schedule. We all have only 24 hours daily, no matter how busy. I spent about two weeks tweaking my daily plans until I found extra hours for my classes.
After figuring that out, I talked to my husband about my big idea. He was worried I might wear myself out, but he was super supportive. He even offered to help out with some chores around the house. Teamwork makes the dream work!
Initially, I decided to take it easy and sign up for two classes each semester. But guess what? I felt bold and bumped it into three courses to finish everything in just two semesters. Yeah, I soon found out that was a big oopsie. Grad school isn’t like undergrad; there’s way more work. I had tons of assignments and papers to write. I even had to take five vacation days from my job to catch up on schoolwork. It’s a good thing it wasn’t the busy end-of-year work season!
Despite the craziness, there were some rules I stuck to:
- Keep Running: Believe it or not, I still ran my usual 5K every morning. It’s my ‘me time.’
- Don’t Overeat at Night: I had to make sure I could focus on studying and feeling too full would make that hard.
- Use Spare Time Wisely: Any extra 15 minutes I had, I used for quick chores. A clean home makes a happy mind.
- Be Grateful: I couldn’t have done this without my amazing husband. He’s my rock.
So, after a chaotic but super rewarding year, I survived and thrived. I kept my grades up and even graduated with two honors. I know this was one of the craziest things I did. Whatever your big dream is, go for it. Just ensure you have a solid plan, an excellent support team, and a lot of determination.