Over the years, I have asked myself many times “Who am I?” Who do I want to be remembered as? What do I want to be known for? In a way I might have already had my “midlife crisis”. I do not “just” want to be a wife and mother. I do not want to be “just” a military dependent. I have my own dreams and aspirations that I have put on hold for many years now. I wanted to do something for myself and going back to school to get my MBA has been just the right thing.
While I was in law school, I started to realize that I was not cut out to be in a court room. While I did enjoy the law, I was not in love with it. I believe one must be passionate to represent clients in court, and I just did not have that. I have always enjoyed the business side of the law and being able to have one foot in the business world and the other in the legal is rewarding for me.
It was a little rough getting back into the swing of studying for my MBA, but I have enjoyed the challenge. I have been extremely happy with the program and have learned so much about myself along the way. It is a different experience going to grad school in your 40’s! Having to learn how to balance work, school, and family was a little difficult at the beginning but has gotten easier with time.
One of the many aspects of going back to school that I have enjoyed is showing my daughter that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. She is almost 12 and sees me studying and writing papers. There have been many times where she was in awe of my assignments and all the work that went into some projects. She has cheered me on many times when I was tired and did not want to continue. I had to explain to the kids that I was going to take more classes this term, so I could graduate in May, and that that would mean that I would be even busier than I was before. To my surprise they were ok with it and said that they wanted to attend my graduation in Philadelphia. Hearing that just made my day and has given me the energy to keep trucking along and working hard. I want to be a good role model for my children, and I hope that when they are grown up, they will be proud of me.
When I started my MBA journey, I was a little disheartened with the way things were going at my job. Since then, there have been many positive changes. I am still in the same position as I was when I started but my roll has grown extensively. We have better communications, and my small team works well together. I am optimistic that we will build on our success and can grow this company even further. In a few weeks I will graduate from Drexel University and I am convinced that the future is looking bright!
