Determination

So it's been a while since I've updated this thing and I've had this entry thought out in my head for some time now. I just finished my second semester of pre-reqs and it definitely feels good to be done with physics. I ended up getting a B in physics which I'm thankful for. Overall these past 2 semesters have gone by so fast and really this entire move I'm making is going by so fast. I made my decision almost exactly one year ago and here I am finished with 4 of the major science courses 9 classes I need. I think everything clicked in my head once I made a PTCAS account which is where you apply to all the schools and submit your information, school records, references, etc. I'm going to be taking my GREs in a month or so and I need to buckle down and study for that. It's crazy how fast it's going and I'm thankful that I have friends who are open to answering my questions. Also through this whole process I've come to realize that God has been teaching me a lot through this whole process, specifically about patience, trust and perseverance. Several times through these past two semesters I've found myself thinking I can do it all by myself which usually lead to doubting whether or not I made the right decision to leave Accenture in the first place. I know that it's absolutely impossible for me to do this on my own and that I will undoubtedly need God's presence through all of this. I still worry about whether I'll even get into a school next school year but that's in God's hands. He's already blessed with even the opportunity to pursue PT with the support of my family and friends, people around me who are so willing to answer questions and even classmates who are my age who are also seeking physical therapy. I've been fortunate enough to meet a couple friends who are also pursuing PT. There are plenty of things that I need to improve on this upcoming semester and I know that I won't be able to make these changes alone.

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I think this is the first Thanksgiving where I've really given thought to all the things I'm blessed with. God has been SO good to me and I am truly thankful for everything. I know I take things for granted but I truly am blessed. I'm thankful that my knee is pretty much back in working order and I'm back playing basketball comfortably without much hesitation. I'm thankful I have the opportunity to pursue my dream career. I take this one for granted because there are times when I don't study as hard as I need to (as shown on my poor grade on my last chem exam) and forget the real reasons for returning to school in the first place. I'm thankful to have the friends around me who support me and are always there for me. I'm thankful for my family who even though may not completely understand my decision on going back to school, fully support my decision for happiness. I'm thankful for a God that is always forgiving and continues to bless with so much.

I hope everyone enjoys their Thanksgiving dinners and appreciate everything we've been given, and for all you crazy people going black Friday shopping, have fun and be safe.


Psalm 107:1 - "Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever."

Motivation

So I'm roughly a month and a half into this 5 year process of changing my career. It's gone better than expected in the sense that there a lot of people in my classes are going back to school to pursue other careers. Even today this one woman who is in her 40s said that she's going back to school for physical therapy as well. Although its only been a month there are still days I wonder if I'm making the right decision. I've had numerous people tell me that they could see me being really good and passionate at physical therapy which is always reassuring. Although many of you don't know it, a lot of you motivate me just by pursuing what your passionate about. Friends like Chris, Martin, Jason, Shannon, Judy are all in PT school right now and have been open about answering all of my questions. Also friends like Miranda, Andrew, Angel, Kirsten, Stephen are going through their respective graduate programs. When I talk to them they complain about the long hours of studying but continue to push on because they're focused on the end goal and that's something truly worth fighting for. People like Victor, Maria, Chris who are all already therapists have offered their opinions and advice as well. I also am thankful for the fact that I have friends like Nick, John, Becca, Joshie, Adam who are all going into physical therapy as well. Although we may not be at the same step I'm thankful that we're all able to support each other. Thank you to my friends who have shown their support/belief in me, especially during those times where I don't believe in myself. I truly am blessed to have such an amazing group of friends who support me each and everyday.



Apologies if I missed anyone.

Turning The Page

So here we go... the official start to my long journey to physical therapy. Tomorrow is the start of classes and I'm taking Chemistry and Physics to start things off. My schedule isn't too bad and I hope to find work at a physical therapy clinic sometime in November. It's a surreal feeling that everything is beginning, it honestly feels like I'm a freshman all over again with all the jitters.

Part of me still thinks I'm crazy for giving up a comfortable job to chase after something that could never happen. The thoughts of failure still float around in my head everyday but I realize that my motives for making this decision was giving from God. In the past my decisions were made base on wants or poor reasoning. My reason to go to Maryland was, "just because." I never even allowed God to show me where I belonged because I only applied to three schools. I prayed for months asking for guidance in making one of the biggest decisions of my life thus far. After talking with numerous friends and of course with God, my decision seemed easy. I'm going to fully trust that God's in control so why worry?

The start has arrived and I'm eager to get things going and the end goal is my drive to focus and do well in school.

Then you will have success if you are careful to observe the decrees and laws that the LORD gave Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.
1 Chronicles 22:13

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10

I'M BACK

I guess saying the words, "I'm back," doesn't have the same affect as when Michael Jordan said it. I went to see my doctor yesterday and he's cleared me to return to play basketball as tolerated. I'll begin easing my way back into basketball and getting back into shape. I honestly couldn't put into words what the last 10 months have been like and how I feel at this moment. The relief that everything healed properly is all attributed to God. I truly believe he has put me though this trial for a reason and I've definitely been blessed through this learning experience. After finishing up with my physical therapy and being cleared by my doctor, I am more convinced than ever in my pursuit of physical therapy.

I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders with the news I received yesterday. I've definitely learned to not take things for granted. Many times we take simple things like walking, running and sports for granted while we can still do them. I still remember the day I got hurt and the injury keep replaying in my head. In that one moment, basketball was taken from me and little did I know it would end up being for 10 months. I think I've learned a lot in the past 10 months, particularly to cherish the things you have now and working hard for the things you want. It's hard to put into words exactly what it's like to go through major surgery without having experienced it yourself. I'll admit even that I was a bit naive to the struggles I had to go through in order to get back into sports again, pretty much rebuilding my right leg which lost all of its muscle after surgery. I was also fortunate enough to heal in 4 months, 3 weeks as it takes some people over 6 months to heal.

I truly appreciate everyone's support and concerns and couldn't be more blessed with such an amazing group of friends. God truly is amazing and I could not have done this without him. Uncle Kevin spoke on Sunday about the pursuit of happiness and mentioned Jeremiah 29:11 which stuck out to me, "¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." This verse could not be any more relevant to these past 10 months and I thank God for putting me this experience.

Moving Forward

So last Wednesday I told my manager and lead that I was returning to school to pursue physical therapy. I couldn't describe to you how nervous I was and I felt particularly worse because both of them have been extremely understanding of everything I've gone through thus far. I basically told them the truth and explained I was pursuing something I've found a real passion for and they were extremely understanding. They appreciated the fact I told them 6 weeks in advance and my last official day at Accenture will be July 30th.

Once I gave them the notice, it really hit me that this was it, I'm committing to pursuing physical therapy. It still scares me that I've made this decision because of the fear of failing. I know this is what I want and something I know I can be good at. The fears of long hours of studying and discipline scare me but I guess that comes with making a big life decision. I'm trying to put my life in God's hands and trust that he will provide and put me exactly where I need to be.

I hope to travel a good amount in the month of August, so if anyone wants to go anywhere let me know! I also have a basketball tournament on August 14th which will be my first time playing competitive basketball since last August. I'm a little past 4 months now and my doctor said he should clear me to return to sports on July 13th. I'm eager and excited to get back to playing basketball again, I've been running outside and am in ridiculously horrible shape.

I MUST BE CRAZY

I’ve recently made perhaps one of the most difficult decisions in my life, I’ve decided to go back to school. Many of you would probably assume it’s for my MBA but it’s actually for physical therapy. Even when I think about it, I wonder if I’m crazy. I’m completely switching career paths going from business to science when the last real science class I took was physics in 12th grade.

Since college, I’ve had one friend in particular always stressing to me to do something in life I’m really passionate about. He brought up the fact that I’ll be doing this for the next 40-45 years of my life. Although I am very blessed and fortunate to have been hired by Accenture, after experiencing it for the past 5+ months, I’ve come to the realization that I can’t see myself in the office setting 40-50 hours a week for the next 40-45 years of my life. I know many will say it’s way too early to judge but I’d much rather be doing something I enjoy then doing something where I am simply going through the motions. Don’t get me wrong, there is absolutely nothing wrong with office work but it’s just not for me.

There is a lot of competition in the business world and the way it works at Accenture is you are matched with people who are around your start date and experience level. You are graded by a reviewer on several points based on whether you exceed, meet or are below expectations. Each level has a set percentage of raises to be given out ranging from 1% to 8%. Although I see the necessity in creating a competitive work environment, I’ve realized I am not as cut throat as I thought I was. Also, there is almost a set plan as far as when you should be promoted. Currently I am a level E and I believe it goes from A to H. I believe every 2 or so years you are expected to be promoted to the next level which means more responsibility and more hours. My manager probably works up ends of 60 hours a week including weekends (I see emails on Saturday nights), he is extremely good at what he does but again that lifestyle isn’t for me.

I want a job that will allow me to interact and help people and isn’t repetitive (it’s a lot to ask I know). After hearing my PT and her co-workers talk about how I’ve progressed and how rewarding it is to see patients improve, I wanted that feeling of helping others overcome obstacles. I also like the appeal of a therapists job, in doing what’s best for the patient and helping them get better. There is minimal to no competition as far as promotions (from what I know). After speaking with Chris, Martin (both currently in PT school) and being around my therapist, they’ve all inspired me to make this decision and I believe this a job where I can be passionate about. My friend asked me, would I rather make double doing what I do now or be a physical therapist and my answer was physical therapist with no hesitation and that excites me.

Tentatively it looks like I’ll be leaving Accenture in December so that I’ll have three full semesters at Montgomery College to finish my pre requisites. This will also allow me to save up some money so that I can pay for PT school. I still need to meet with a friend to have a plan in place before I apply, but I believe I will be applying October-December of 2011 and plan to be in PT school by 2012.

I KNOW this will be extremely difficult but I do believe God has put me in this situation for a reason. Thinking about the events which have led me to make my decision from getting hurt, getting a job which allowed me to have insurance, to getting surgery, meeting my therapist and talking with people about my future, every step has been almost perfectly set up for me to make this decision. I spoke with a former coworker about my future and how I was thinking about changing career paths, he explained that if it’s something I really want, I need to go for it because I’ll live my life in regret if I don’t even make an effort. Obviously there are HUGE risks with my decision, I’m giving up a comfortable job with a big company, venturing to a field which I have minimal to no experience in and the drop rate in PT school is relatively high. Believe me I am scared out of my mind but I’m more scared not to even try. If I try and fail, I can honestly live with my decision that I made an effort.

I challenge all of you to really do something you enjoy. I thought I wanted to do business but it’s really not for me and I’m glad I at least have a chance to do something I can see myself enjoying. Don’t do something because it’s safe or the right thing to do or your parents say so. Do it because YOU want to and don’t worry about what others think. It’s your life and your career and make an active effort to doing what you want to do. There is no doubt in my mind I’ll be miserable numerous times throughout this whole process but if I focus on the ultimate goal the rewards will far overshadow the hardships.

I’ve already told some of you about my decision to return to school and I’m glad to have the support from all of you. Many of you were in disbelief I’d make such a big decision but also offered words of encouragement. My mom was shocked to hear my final decision but ultimately wants me to be happy. I’m thankful and blessed to such an amazing group of family and friends and appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

James 1:2-6
2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.