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Live and Learn I guess I'm lucky – I still have a job. It's just not the right job. When I boarded this bus, I must not have read the destination sign carefully. I have a sinking feeling as the landscape streaking by becomes increasingly unfamiliar. How did I get here? I never wanted to be in advertising. (It wasn't an easy fit – just needed a job.) And I can't count the times I've been told "You don't seem the advertising type," whatever the "type" is. As soon as the bus stops, I'll jump off. I have no idea where I am, but what a relief it will be to stop the forward motion. I was just getting deeper into someone else's story and lost to my own! Now not only do I have to figure out where I am, but where I should be going. (The map has changed since I started this ride.) Of course, once I figure out where I want to go, I no longer have the fare to get on the right bus. I need new skills, more confidence, a different outlook. I need to make my own opportunities. This is where I found myself a few years ago. Stuck. Wasting time as others moved ahead, losing touch with the job world. Not just standing still, but actually falling behind. I had spent my entire career following someone else's lead, helping to realize another's dream. I had to take control, start working for myself, not as an entrepreneur (though I found the courage to do that, too), but as a "package" I could offer employers on my terms. So I went back to school – a 45-year-old sophomore. I decided that the next time, I didn't just want a ticket to ride, I wanted a license to drive! Despite many doubts and even more frustrations, I enjoyed college and I learned a lot – studied psychology, business and information systems. Best of all I learned that I had not wasted those post-high school years. My life experience provided the foundation for my studies – gave me an advantage over traditional classmates. And I didn't just learn new skills. I changed my life. Of course, mine is just one student's story. Adult learners are nearly as diverse as the adult population. The NCES defines "non-traditional" students as having one or more of these characteristics: over 25, financially independent, a parent, out of school for several years. Since most non-traditional students have a combination of these elements, the category is broad and growing. According to recent statistics, we are now in the majority of the total student population! The one thing we all share is life experience. As adults, we've already invested a lifetime in learning. With sharper focus, deeper perspective and self-understanding, we can and do excel as students. 9/03 TOP |
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