Are you living up to your potential?

ChoKuRei

ChoKuRei

Banned
Banned
Joined
May 13, 2016
Messages
2,007
Reaction score
768
hello. I am conflicted. 26 years old. Been practicing massage therapy professionally for 3 years. No college education. Earn about $50K before taxes, no debt. Feel pretty good about my situation but also feel like I could do a lot better career wise...

For example I think about going to college to become an environmental engineer or something fascinating like that with great projected job growth, employment opportunities, great $$.. could even join the military and go to school for free which would be awesome..

But then I think about how poor my academic performance was all throughout grade school and how difficult it was for me to get through my massage therapy school with so much emphasis on anatomy + physiology etc..

And I wonder what my realistic capabilities are... am I really intelligent enough to go to school to become an engineer or something to that degree? I wish I had pursued a legit career like that what I was just in high school as a teenager. Suppose it’s not too late still being in my mid 20’s.

What I am most scared of is talking myself out of pursuing something greater/more challenging and realizing I never lived up to my fullest potential, that scares the shit out of me. It also won’t be so easy to change careers when I am older.

I don’t really know what else to say. Maybe it’s just my Ego and that is the actual problem. I am at a crossroads in my life and feel that I could just be doing better. I want to be pushed and challenged so that I can become a greater version of myself. But Perhaps I am delusional and should know my place in life, should recognize this is already my place? I do not know guys.
 
Yeah, I'm actually in talks to jump to a completely different field of work. I've pretty much just got offered a job in IT that will get my foot in the door or I can work for the best company in my area (Which is also a completely different field.) My situation is pretty similar to yours TS, besides giving happy endings.

I'm going to have to get a crap ton of certificates though if I wanna do something in IT but I'm leaning towards that.

Guess what I'm saying is that I can relate.
 
Last edited:
Nope not at all. I am a homeowner, have a car, made a very profitable investment a few years ago and am able to save money but came nowhere near reaching my potential. I'm lazy though. I'm still doing better than minimum 80% of the global population though so it doesn't bother me. Much.
 
There's always more you can do but I'm happy with life
 
Chekc my sherdog likes bro.

I've done a couple bucket list things, so I'm cool with that. Still have lots left.

I hope to transition to a new work-life balance witin the next 5 to 7 years but cool for now
 
Look man, the fact that you're asking if maybe you're not intelligent enough is a good sign. The world is chock-full of stupid people who think they're smart and want to fix society instead of fixing themselves and never question themselves. What a wretched way to go through life.

If you want to change careers, then do it. Playing it safe sounds like a great to be miserable in a decade. Don't talk yourself out of doing something you want to do.
 
ChoKuRei said:
hello. I am conflicted. 26 years old. Been practicing massage therapy professionally for 3 years. No college education. Earn about $50K before taxes, no debt. Feel pretty good about my situation but also feel like I could do a lot better career wise...

For example I think about going to college to become an environmental engineer or something fascinating like that with great projected job growth, employment opportunities, great $$.. could even join the military and go to school for free which would be awesome..

But then I think about how poor my academic performance was all throughout grade school and how difficult it was for me to get through my massage therapy school with so much emphasis on anatomy + physiology etc..

And I wonder what my realistic capabilities are... am I really intelligent enough to go to school to become an engineer or something to that degree? I wish I had pursued a legit career like that what I was just in high school as a teenager. Suppose it’s not too late still being in my mid 20’s.

What I am most scared of is talking myself out of pursuing something greater/more challenging and realizing I never lived up to my fullest potential, that scares the shit out of me. It also won’t be so easy to change careers when I am older.

I don’t really know what else to say. Maybe it’s just my Ego and that is the actual problem. I am at a crossroads in my life and feel that I could just be doing better. I want to be pushed and challenged so that I can become a greater version of myself. But Perhaps I am delusional and should know my place in life, should recognize this is already my place? I do not know guys.
Click to expand...
if you’re going back to school then you should test the job market by adding the degree to your resume and see what companies are interested.
 
I feel the same way. I was so bad in school, I failed over 20 classes in high school and got expelled.

I never payed any attention in class, I learned nothing at all in school. I remember I would fake that all my work was done and go wreck everyone at chess, because we had chess boards in our classrooms.

It wasnt until my mid 20s I started to become interested in learning. I started self teaching myself, and basically everything I know today is self taught. I read like 6 hours a day now.

Still, even knowing I didnt try in school, I still fear going back and failing again. People tried to get me to go back for years and years but I never did.
 
Would it be worth to take on all that student debt especially if you are making 50K?

I joined the military at 25. It is hard though. You will be different b/c of your age
 
impossible to judge yourself. Would need honest collective input from 5 or 6 people who know you best to make a more accurate judgement.

As for myself, I think some would say yes, and some would say no. I don't think i do enough and I think I could do better. That keeps me going.
 
Nah doubt it but I was eating the best ass of my or anyones life for 2 months recently so I can't complain.
 
It's going to sound cliche but if you are determined enough to do anything, you'll do it. Don't question if you are smart enough, just get your ass in gear and do it. If you're passionate about it of course.

I fucked off in high school, barely getting by. Went to tech school for two years after that to learn how to work on cars. Barely got by doing that by doing the bare minimum. I was an unmotivated person up until I got my shit together at 23. Went back to school at 24 to get a bachelors and found that literally having a new found motivation in life helped me excel in school.

Just get over the mental roadblock.
 
I'm more worried i'll die alone never having touched or grown to be an integral part of a close friend, girlfriend, or family member's interpersonal life...and only having myself to blame for it.
 
Last edited:
ChoKuRei said:
hello. I am conflicted. 26 years old. Been practicing massage therapy professionally for 3 years. No college education. Earn about $50K before taxes, no debt. Feel pretty good about my situation but also feel like I could do a lot better career wise...

For example I think about going to college to become an environmental engineer or something fascinating like that with great projected job growth, employment opportunities, great $$.. could even join the military and go to school for free which would be awesome..

But then I think about how poor my academic performance was all throughout grade school and how difficult it was for me to get through my massage therapy school with so much emphasis on anatomy + physiology etc..

And I wonder what my realistic capabilities are... am I really intelligent enough to go to school to become an engineer or something to that degree? I wish I had pursued a legit career like that what I was just in high school as a teenager. Suppose it’s not too late still being in my mid 20’s.

What I am most scared of is talking myself out of pursuing something greater/more challenging and realizing I never lived up to my fullest potential, that scares the shit out of me. It also won’t be so easy to change careers when I am older.

I don’t really know what else to say. Maybe it’s just my Ego and that is the actual problem. I am at a crossroads in my life and feel that I could just be doing better. I want to be pushed and challenged so that I can become a greater version of myself. But Perhaps I am delusional and should know my place in life, should recognize this is already my place? I do not know guys.
Click to expand...

3 or 4 years will pass fast, there are plenty of free education resources online. Go nuts, you're young. You could test a subject for a year before deciding if you want to pay for testing.
 
Not really, then again I get distracted a lot and lose enthusiasm just as fast as I can become enthusiastic about something.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
1,236,986
Messages
55,459,542
Members
174,787
Latest member
Freddie556

Share this page

Back
Top