Why Everyone Should Pursue an Education

     I have been attending school now for a little over 15 years; and to say that it has been an extremely stressful and time consuming experience would be a massive understatement.  However, just the fact that i'm still here spending most of my days studying and completing schoolwork despite the burdensome and long-lasting process of completing my education,  truly emphasizes how important I think pursuing an education is.  www.collegeparentcentral.com states, "a student should be spending roughly 30 hours of study time and 15 hours in class." which amounts to around 45 hours per week. 
    With technology and the internet becoming increasingly more popular amongst the newer generation; it is also becoming much more common for individuals to pursue their personal hobbies and interests in hopes of one day turning it into their career.  Considering the nearly endless possibilities of the online world, it's not difficult to understand why fewer people are attending universities and working towards their personal goals and interests directly out of high school.  However, from my personal experience's, i've found that a key component to living a good life is maximizing your opportunities for the future.  More specifically, opportunities that could potentially lead to a full-filling career. 

 Although I have only been on this earth for 20 years, I am thankful to have been lucky enough to witness the many different paths of life that a person can take and where each one of those paths lead too.  My first attempt at attending college was in Fall 2018;I was lost, unmotivated, and ended up dropping out just 2 weeks into the semester.  The feelings of confusion, frusturation, and defeat began to grow exponentially.  Little did I know, this would be the most important and impactful year of my life so far. 

 During this year of not attending school, I secured myself 3 drastically different jobs.  My first job was at a grocery store for 2 months, then I worked at a welding factory for 3 months, and after that I worked for 2 months as a personal trainer.  I was the youngest person at each one of these jobs by quite a large margin, and as you could imagine, I encountered a wide variety of individuals who all had very different goals and dreams in life.  As an eager and curious individual, I made sure to befriend as many adults and co-workers as I could.  I knew that I could greatly benefit from listening to some of their stories and past experiences.  Some of the stories I heard about these people's family, heritage, and past experiences are still some of my favorite memories to this day. 

 However, one desire in particular was shared among almost every person I encountered in the workforce, and that desire was to be able pursue an education; whether it was for themselves or their family.

 One of the most memorable people I was lucky enough to meet was Jaime, a 65 year-old grandfather who had been balancing 2 separate welding jobs for the past 30 years.  He was the best welder I've ever met and made extremely complex parts from scratch for advanced and important companies such as NASA and Disney.  He told me the reason why he works so hard is so that his granddaughters can attend a good university and not have to work as hard as he does.

    The Majority of the Co-Workers I encountered below the age of 30 were either paying off their soon-to-come or already accumulated college debt.  There were a few young individuals that I met who were not planning on attending a school in the near future, however, this was only because there was something going on in their life that prevented them from doing so; such as having a child or paying off their car.  

    Either way, the lesson to be learned was deeply imprinted into my brain and heavily motivated me to get right back into college and work as hard as I possibly can.

    As I stated earlier, a key component to a good life is to expand and maximize your opportunities.  A few great ways you can accomplish this is by gaining experience in the workforce that is heavily sought after by employers; or by accumulating an impressive resume by taking highly-difficult courses and/or certified trainings that supply you with a degree or license or something of the sort.  The main benefit of doing this is that it exponentially expands your options in the near-future; which will eliminate the feeling of being trapped or stuck in the same spot in life for a long period of time.  An example of this feeling would be having to work at a sub-par job for 10+ years and no one else will hire you do to lack of education or experience.

    An individual who has experience and insight in a field that is sought after by employers, or a certified license/degree in a relevant field of work often has no trouble finding many good paying jobs that include benefits such as paid vacations and health insurance.  Furthermore, an individual with the aforementioned skills or certifications often obtains many attributes that are extremely desirable by many employers; such as presenting oneself in a professional manner, great communication skills, and experience within a highly-respected field of work.  By assuring that you obtain the maximum amount of these desirable attributes, you will be simultaneosuly assuring yourself plenty of leverage with your future employer.  A good employer will quickly recognize these attributes and will most-definitely hire th
e person with the most positive characteristics for the job.

    I'm sure you've heard the quote, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket." Essentially, it's saying to not sacrifice everything for one thing.  Although you may love painting, or sports, or playing an instrument, etc; the chances are that you will outgrow these interests and hobbies over the next few years.  It is also much easier to outgrow something when there is an abundance of it.  If an artist turns their painting into a professional career, they will have to paint to support themselves, therefore painting almost everyday.  

    A good future comes to those who work for it.  In order for a person to truly maximize their opportunities, they must sacrifice many hours of their life and devote themselves to obtaining positive characteristics sought after by relevant employers.  As stated earlier, one of the most sure ways to do this is by completing a formal education and/or certified training that lets employers know you're well qualified for the job and obtain those aforementioned desirable attributes.