LIFE ON THE FAST LANE

When I took the decision to pursue higher education in MBA two years ago, I was super excited about the endless possibilities this opportunity will present - new friends, wider scope of knowledge, a prospect of a better job, etc. Though the decision was ultimately rushed and unplanned, I was still very enthusiastic and hyped about it. I had no pre-financial plans laid out, just a few cedis saved away, yet, financing my education was the least of my worry.

I chose an evening school which worked better for me considering the long hours a weekend class option presented. I'd end my day at work at exactly 5pm each day; making so much noise about being a master's student, it begun to get on the nerves of a few colleagues - well that was the whole purpose.

Time passed by quietly and everything seemed to be working out just fine. I never missed a single day of class the first semester, and this was pretty effortless to achieve considering my excitement. We had our first school break and I was back to staying late at work to finish up leftover work or just while away time catching up on some office gossip.

It was time to go back to school, and as surprising as it may seem, your girl just wasn't feeling it. I missed the calmness of staying back after work without any sense of urgency hanging around my conscience.

And at the same time, I begun to consciously think about my finances as I made payments for the second installment of my fees. My buying behavior shifted to prioritizing needs over wants and eventually prioritizing survival needs over mere needs. 

I was completely unprepared for the life-on-a-fast-lane I was about to experience. I was constantly exhausted, in some sort of rush and even had no time to have my clothes neatly ironed. I began to virtually wear the same clothes each week as those were the easiest to work with considering balancing my constraint for time and how much I loved my sleep.

Mind you, prior to this life, my daily motivation to wake up each morning was the many "crazy" outfit ideas I couldn't wait to show-off at work. And better believe your girl actually showed up to turn heads! No, not with expensive clothes, just queer and unusual tomboy-ish stuff like suspenders, leather boots, button-up collar shirts, over-sized male shirts, weird shoes, etc.
As normal as these style trends might seem now in 2018, this wasn't the case 5 years ago when my weird self got influenced surfing the web.

WELL! Within the next two years, your girl will suffer from psychological and emotional exhaustion, a complete disconnect with school - with attendance dropping to almost 5% by the fourth semester and eventually loosing it all - enthusiasm, excitement, fashion sense, everything. Family was the only consolation.

Fast forward to just two days after writing my last paper and I am in awe at the compliments about my cheerfulness, looks, style, etc. No, I didn't go clothing shopping, neither did I consciously decide to change me overall attitude.

I was actually oblivious of any such change until the compliments came pouring in, less than an hour after arriving at work.

One compliment I loved the most was "you do have this SUBTLE style that I like so much. Pretty low-key and muted yet hard to miss and describe".

Well, let's not allow my fashion style and choices make us loose sight of the moral of the story

PRE-PLAN MAJOR LIFE CHANGING COMMITMENTS AND STAY WOKE ABOUT YOUR EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH.