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I’m Career Focused And That’s Okay

I’m 21, with a degree, a job after graduation, and strong. And I’m not sorry for not being in love.

Kennedy B

Mar 07, 2017

Johnson & Wales University

Kennedy Brooks

At age 18 most seniors in high school know a few things:

What they are doing after high school
Where they are going to their graduation party
They are in a relationship with the love of their life

18-year-old me was a little different. I did not go and party after my high school graduation and I was not in a relationship. However, I did know one thing; I wanted to be a Pastry Chef at Johnson & Wales University. I knew that in four short years, I would have a degree and travel all over the States doing what I loved.

Okay, let’s fast forward those four years to the 21-year-old getting ready to start her final semester of college. I’m still that same "no relationship having and wanting to be a Pastry Chef" girl. I have gone through all four years of school not being in a serious relationship because I knew that soon the day would come where I pack up everything I own and move far away from school to start this new life. I knew no guy would ever be okay with a long-distance relationship with a headstrong girl. I knew early in life what I wanted to do and I was always focused on that one thing.

Being career focused is becoming more and more acceptable every day. How many women do you know who gave up what they wanted to be to be “that wife”? Maybe it’s your grandmother, aunt, mother, or maybe even yourself. Maybe you feel yourself losing your identity in a relationship. No one should ever have to lose who they are because of being in love.

Maybe one day I will be in that relationship. You know that can't-eat, can't-sleep, reach-for-the-stars, over-the-fence, World Series kind of stuff. (Yes, I just pulled that from the Mary-Kate & Ashley movie) Now don’t get me wrong, I love my school and my (soon-to-be) career. I know I will meet someone, someday. But until then, my pastry bags don’t snore at night.

I always knew this is what I wanted and a relationship was never a necessity. I always viewed being in a relationship would get in my way of what I wanted and how I was going to achieve it. I’m 21, with a degree, a job after graduation, and strong. And I’m not sorry for not being in love.

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I’m Career Focused And That’s Okay

I’m 21, with a degree, a job after graduation, and strong. And I’m not sorry for not being in love.

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No one best represents the struggle like our favorite 90s squad.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

2. When there is only one section of a popular course.

3. Receiving the 18,000 emails reminding you to register ASAP.

4. When you need to see an advisor, but they are too busy/unresponsive.

5. Trying not to dress like a bum for your appointments with your advisors/department heads.

6. When you have a perfectly planned out schedule, and one class ruins it.

7. Carefully moving things around to accommodate a different class/section.

8. Waking up at 6:00 a.m. for your enrollment time.

9. Concocting a new schedule at your enrollment time after your original plan gets changed.

10. Getting into a class and filling the last available seat.

11. When all of your classes finally go through.

12. Realizing that you forgot a class that was a pre-requisite for everything else.

When your capability of "adulting" is put to the test

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

"Nobody living in one of the most influential nations in the world should be worried about making ends meet."

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What are the benefits of raising the minimum wage?

What are the states that have set a $15/hour minimum wage?

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1. When you have to provide an "interesting fact" for your first day ice-breaker.

2. When your professor is babbling on and on in his lecture.

3. When you edit your friend's paper and they get an A.

4. When it's 2 AM and you remember you have a test tomorrow.

5. When you finish taking the test and you're pretty sure you failed...

6. ...but then you get the test back and somehow passed.

7. When you've been up for 12 hours straight writing a paper.

8. And then you manage to stay awake in class the next day.

9. When you have to butter up your professor for an extra credit opportunity.

10. When you're assigned a group project.

11. And your group-mates are trying to chat about life instead of the assignment.

12. When it's your last class of the day and you're about to go home.

13. But then you remember rent is due tonight and the anger comes back.

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