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Blog Post 1

The Beginning

"You can be anything you want when you grow up"

How many of us have heard these words from parents, teachers, or anybody else for that matter?

Do we really believe that? Is it actually true?

Kind of.

I've never been the best standardized test taker. Or maybe I just respond better to different kinds of tests. I was a decent student all throughout elementary, middle, and high school. My best SAT scored was 990 and that is pretty terrible compared to all the other people I deemed "smart." I started off my college endeavors at Valdosta State University which was good for me. The classes weren't all that difficult, but it let me figure out the college lifestyle and how to manage a schedule while being away from home, but not too far home that I couldn't get back if I needed to. It took me a semester to get my feet under me but I eventually figured out how to manage my time, how to prep for my exams, and how to live away from home.

It was a good year.

I ended up transferring to Kennesaw State University for my second year and it was noticeably more challenging. This is a story for another time, but I was planning on getting a Meteorology degree. I knew that I had a ton of math classes I needed to take to meet my degree requirements so by the time I got to KSU I was knee deep in Calculus I and II. I only graduated high school with Algebra III which meant that I had to take a math class every semester if I wanted to graduated remotely on time. I had always struggled with math and the idea of calculus was pretty frightening. However, I had a professor, Dr. Burke, who was unique, a little goofy, and was incredibly gifted at bringing this overwhelming world of the "mathematical study of continuous change" into surprising simple terms. I ended up with solid B's in both of those classes.

I was THRILLED.

Year 3 took me to "The Big Dance." I transferred into The University of Georgia (technically BELOW their minimum acceptance requirements) and entered their Geography Program which, apparently, was really looking for students and trying to grow. I'm glad they were looking to grow because I was looking to grow too. It was mutually beneficial. I knew it was going to be a big change but I didn't realize how big, nor how quickly, the "drinking from a fire hose" would begin. The first class I walked into was Calculus III. I can't remember the teacher's name but he was Russian and I could barely understand him. This was a first for me. First class of the first day of my first semester at UGA - he walked into the classroom, quickly set his few personal items on his desk, and immediately hit the chalk board with the chalk and began. No introduction, no welcome, just straight business. My figurative seat belt was strapped, tightened, tightened again, and I held on for dear life.

I quickly learned that UGA had great student programs for those willing to attend. I found the "Math Lab" that offered "free" math tutoring from other students who were getting degrees in things like Math or Physics. I was in the Math Lab so frequently that some students would come up to me and ask questions thinking that I was one of the tutors. I wish I could have helped, but I had my own problems. I wasn't naturally gifted at math, but I was not going to quit. I have no idea how the other students did in my class, but I only saw 1 or 2 of them ever in the Math Lab with me. I couldn't get through the class without TONS (and I mean TONS) of extra effort, nor could I waste time wondering how everyone else was getting by. I had to manage myself, my situation, and not worry about anyone else.

So that is what I did.

I was having a conversation with my Academic Advisor as I was getting close to graduation and he asked, "Have you thought about grad school?" I told him that I had thought about it, but hadn't seriously considered it because I wasn't sure how I'd pay for it nor did I feel like I'd have the test scores to get in (which is a HUGE requirement of getting accepted as a graduated student). I explained to him how, despite taking test prep courses, I only got a 990 on the SAT and about an 1000 on the GRE (basically the graduate school version of the SAT). He was astounded. His facial expression could hold back his shock on how someone with those (very low) test scores could successfully make it through Calculus I, II, II, Differential Equations, and a ton of other Physics and Advanced Science classes. Something hit me that very moment that I will never forget. I always knew this deep down, but it was cemented right there, in that moment, in his office: HARD WORK ALWAYS WINS. I knew then that no matter what I wanted to do in life was in my own hands. Sure, there would be things I would not be able to afford, or things that I won't be able to do or accomplish because I have a wife and a son, but everything - within reason - was going to be within reach if I focused my time, effort, and resources on how hard I want to reach it. I was not good at those standardized tests, but I EXCELLED at life's tests.

Determination. Grit. Effort.

"You can be anything you want when you grow up." Do I believe this is true? It depends. It depends on how bad you want it. For me, I believe it, and that is why I'm choosing to love what I do and fish for a living.