Following your own path: When it finally starts paying off

Hey there fellow Steemians, it's Rabbe once again. Those of you who have followed my posts probably know how much I love to talk about following your own path and making your own choices instead of just following others. Today's post is going to fall into the same category, since this week I finally had some promising conversations I've been hoping for.

Swimming against the stream

I was always good at school. Teachers said I was smart, I always got good grades etc. so of course everyone expected that I was going to pursue an academic career. I still remember the look on people's faces when I told I wanted to become a carpenter. They said I could be anything I wanted, so why choose something so modest and dirty? They told me I'd just waste my potential doing something like that, said I wasn't going to get a job anywhere and what not.

However, I had made my mind and started the studies. Three years later I graduated as the best of my class with a wide knowledge base and diverse woodworking skills.

Then I decided I wanted to expand my knowledge onto the building industry, so I went through 2 years of housebuilding studies. This gave me a lot of important information and a better understanding on how overlapped the building industry is with wood industry. At this point I had also got some valuable work experience from both fields.

I had already studied for 5 years, but I still felt like I wanted to know more. Woodworking was always "The thing" for me, so I thought it would be cool to become a wood technology engineer. Once again people asked me why. "Why would you study for 4 years to become an engineer on something that doesn't guarantee a job in the future? It's a dying industry you know." You guessed it, I didn't listen to them. They also said that I couldn't pass all the math and physics courses because I only had a vocational qualification. I just thought "Okay, then I'll study those things on my own before starting there". And that's just what I did. Not have I only passed all of my math and physics courses, I have received nearly perfect grades.

I have now studied for 3 years and loved every moment. I've also noticed how little knowledge I actually had about wood and woodworking.

Being stubborn starting to pay off

While I've been following my own path and sticking to my choices, I have of course had my doubts at times. "Am I going to get a job", "What if they were right" etc.

However, it's now starting to look like I made the right choices afterall. I'm currently working on my thesis that was ordered by one of the biggest Finnish companies in the wood industry. In addition to that, two separate companies have asked me about my plans after graduation and shown their interest in hiring me to work for them as a project engineer. I have to admit, this feels really good after all these years of people doubting why I do what I do. It's like I finally showed them I was right.

To all the people following their own path

Don't let others bring you down. People often think they know what's best for everyone, but it's easy to give advice when you don't have to deal with the consequences. Only you can choose what's best for you. It's wise to listen to others, but foolish to blindly follow their advice. If you truly believe in something, do it. If you fail, at least you know you tried.

That's all for today people. Live your life like you want to, even though it can be hard because of the external pressure. Until next time. Peace.
-R