Feel bad about not having a college degree?

[Rodney]

Don't, they're useless! :facelol:

Their daughter goes to graduate school, earns a doctorate in comparative literature from an Ivy League university, everyone is proud of her, and then they are shocked when she struggles for years to earn more than the minimum wage. (Meanwhile, her brother—who was never very good at school—makes a decent living fixing HVAC systems with a six-month certificate from a for-profit school near the Interstate.)

Unable even to consider that something might be wrong with higher education, mom and dad begin to think there is something wrong with their daughter, and she begins to internalize that feeling.

Everyone has told her that "there are always places for good people in academe." She begins to obsess about the possibility of some kind of fatal personal shortcoming. She goes through multiple mock interviews, and takes business classes, learning to present herself for nonacademic positions. But again and again, she is passed over in favor of undergraduates who are no different from people she has taught for years. Maybe, she wonders, there's something about me that makes me unfit for any kind of job.

This goes on for years: sleepless nights, anxiety, escalating and increasingly paralyzing self-doubt, and a host of stress-induced ailments. She has even removed the Ph.D. from her résumé, with some pain, but she lives in dread that interviewers will ask what she has been doing for the last 12 years. (All her old friends are well established by now, some with families, some with what seem to be high-powered careers. She lives in a tiny apartment and struggles to pay off her student loans.) What's left now but entry-level clerical work with her immediate supervisor just three years out of high school?

She was the best student her adviser had ever seen (or so he said); it seemed like a dream when she was admitted to a distinguished doctoral program; she worked so hard for so long; she won almost every prize; she published several essays; she became fully identified with the academic life; even distancing herself from her less educated family. For all of those reasons, she continues as an adjunct who qualifies for food stamps, increasingly isolating herself to avoid feelings of being judged. Her students have no idea that she is a prisoner of the graduate-school poverty trap. The consolations of teaching are fewer than she ever imagined.
Read article @ chronicle.com (http://chronicle.com/article/The-Big-Lie-About-the-Life-of/63937/)

[JoyPath]

It has been so much fun to watch my younger daughter thrive now that she considers herself an "unschooler." For those who wouldn't understand she uses the term "self-directed homeschooler" - that makes people think "She's a really hard worker!" LOL

She loves photography is amazing and creative with it, just having fun. People who don't know her are now offering and paying her to take pictures for them.

She is now interviewing different small business owners and I'm sure will get much more valuable information from them than her friends are getting in high school.

This world is going to be so amazing when people get back to learning and discovering for the JOY OF IT and quit imprisoning our children "for their own good."

My 2 cents.

[Pina Colada]

Steph,thank you so much for sharing your story!
It sounds so magickal!

I love hearing about people who are happy and payed for their passion..


I too think about college a LOT.To go,or not to go.I am lazy but I am so curious how will it be.
This is something to consider tho.

Thanks Rod.

[asjairok]

you can't learn abraham knowledge in school, so we are in great possition, being searcher and learners, and we are able to be teachers, for example...our steady faith is giving us everything.

[Flo]

Feels a bit synchronistic, as I just stumbled upon this video on the ME forum, about the usefulness of a college degree.

YouTube- Napoleon Hill-What the mind can conceive, believe & achieve.




The name Napolean Hill always makes me think of Jerry Hicks and thoughts of Jerry Hicks always makes me think of Esther Hicks and thoughts of Esther Hicks always....well, you get the domino effect.........one good thought leads to another. :D

[Flo]

You seem to be particularly blessed in that way, Flo. :love:

Thanks Leah for putting it that way. :love:

I am a believer in abe's 17/68 second rule....two summers ago, I played with it, almost daily. It really helped. Major break-thru for me. Oh, that and the two ends of the stick.

Maybe later, I'll have the time to tell my crappy pond story.....it was a major break-thru.

Thanks again.
Flo

[Ynaig]

<Account Deleted by Member Request> 10:18PM EST, 2010-04-20

[Ynaig]

<Account Deleted by Member Request> 10:18PM EST, 2010-04-20

[Flo]

I shall now spend 17 seconds thinking how great Abetalk will be when Flo has more time. :grin:

Oh Leah, it worked. :grin: I am officially snowed in and can't get to where I'm going, so I have time to tell.

Here's a bit about the 17 second rule


Why 17 Seconds?
Abraham says that a thought reaches a combustion point at 17 seconds of pure undiluted focus. It draws another thought to it and it is exponentially more powerful. At the end of another 17 seconds, 34 seconds total, the next thought combusts, and by Law of Attraction, evolves to a higher level of energy. Again another 17 seconds to 51 seconds continues the process, and finally, if you can continue a pure thought for 68 seconds on any given subject, it will be on its way to manifestation. The key word is pure, meaning positive focus, strong energy, no resistance; to not slip into lackful thinking.


Here's my spin and my story.....(briefly, there's really alot to it....this is just the highlight).

Two summer's ago, I was doing Artist's Way with a group of 4 other woman. Part of the Artists Way is taking yourself on Artists Dates.....a date with yourself. Noone else is allowed to go, for the point of it is for you to be with YOU and nurture your inner artist.

One of these amazing woman had a "thing" for ponds.....she was a Weight Watchers Leader and someone in one her classes had a home whose pond was on the Bucks County Pond Tour. The home owner invited her to come and see the pond as her Artists Date. After she did, she reported to our little group how magnificently beautiful this pond was.....a breath-taking back yard with a gorgeous, out-of-this world pond.

Interestingly, another woman in the group, had a husband who built a fantastic pond in her back yard.........to surprise him, she wanted to get his pond listed in the Montgomery County Pond Tours. She brought in pictures.....another fantastically beautiful pond.

I was like, "what's going on with all these ponds?" I never really thought of it before........never was attracted, but somehow their enthusiasm ignited a desire.

So for my Artist date, I went to a nature reserve for a hike with a view of a pond. As I followed the signs marked "To the POND"....I got quite lost, and in my lostness, I kept passing by a swamp, full of scummy water, tall weeds and mud. After about my 3rd time walking by, it dawned on me that the swamp was THE POND that the signs were pointing to.

I yelled at the Universe......why do they get beautiful ponds, and I get the crappy pond. It's not fair. It's not right. They get the beauty, I get the crap....swampland, mud, green scum, fallen branches and mile high weeds. I was so MAD.

As I said, that summer I was practicing /playing with abe's 17/68 rule. So the thought occured to me, to focus my attention for 17 secs..........but I was too angry, too frustrated. No way! I told the Universe........this pond is just crap. I want the beauty.

For one little split second, that little voice inside my head, saw the freakin' irony. I laughed, for just a second, then resumed being very disgusted and annoyed. No way could I focus on anything good for 17/68 seconds, but, maybe just maybe I could search for and find 68 things to appreciate in this mess.

Hey, I hiked a freakin' 4 miles to find this pond........there has to be something worthwhile to tell my Artists Way group at our next meeting!

So I began to look for something....I noticed 4 dragonflies buzzing above the green scum. OK, that's 4 things. I had to force myself as I was so resistant. If not for my Artists Way group, I would have given up.....it was ridiculously crappy. I then noticed the small purple wild flowers growing along the bank.....ok that's 5. The sturdy old tree across the swamp was 6.....I 'll never get to 68 things; I'll settle for 17 things.......and then 3 wild peacocks appeared from the brush....OMG 7-8-9. Then butterflies appeared 11-12-13-14, then birds 15-16-17, then my heart just opened up and the crappy pond was transformed into wild, natural beauty. Right before my eyes.....nothing changed, but everything changed. It was like my thoughts combusted....and it was FUN. I felt so high. It was a deeply profound moment.


The other very cool thing is that I brought my tarot cards. After finding my 68 things to appreciate, and feeling so high, I sat down on a nearby bench.On my hike, I had picked up 3 interesting feathers and a nut shaped like a heart. I placed them beside me on the bench, as I shuffled the cards and picked one.

I picked the 3 of Swords.....which is the card of mental anguish.....and, it gave me chill bumps when I realized how the 3 feathers with their pointed quills looked like the 3 swords in the card and the nut looked like the heart.

Since that day, I am very sensitive to the power of my thoughts, the power of my mind, the power of my focus. I am resolved to find the goodness, as abe says, "there is wanted and unwanted in every particle in the Universe"....and "there must be a pony in here somewhere".

It's been 2 summers, and so far it is working. And when I need a reminder, I listen to Madonna AND Timberlakes, 4 minutes to change the world.

It was a powerful lesson for me....and even though my life is still does not match my wildest dreams, I am more content and happy than I have ever been. And I feel on path......and very trusting.

It's a long post.....but it felt good to write and share, Thanks for listening. :love:

[Ynaig]

<Account Deleted by Member Request> 10:18PM EST, 2010-04-20

[Flo]

Yes, you must have done that Leah.......something changed.:grin:

Love the sync about ponds....crappy ones and beautiful ones. There is something about bodies of water...great channels of intuition.

You have such a beautiful space for your love of gardening Leah. That's a blessing too.

Enjoy your creating,
Flo:heart:

I just clicked on the thumb nails....Wow....what interesting trees....what a lovely space.

[Flo]

I love your photo-shop for visualing....takes Vision boards to the next level....very creative.

Leah, have you ever read/done Artists Way?

[Pina Colada]

Wow Flo,tarot cards!
I've been discovering how many abetalkers are into them..Including me!(I got a gift of gorgeous tarot cards around the same time as the ME book).

I love reading about your experiences..

Leah,the second picture is very pretty...So rain forest-y.

[Flo]

This is me being so un-creative.....just cutting and pasting from amazon but does says it best. (Used copies on amazon for 2.47).

With the basic principle that creative expression is the natural direction of life, Julia Cameron and Mark Bryan lead you through a comprehensive twelve-week program to recover your creativity from a variety of blocks, including limiting beliefs, fear, self-sabotage, jealousy, guilt, addictions, and other inhibiting forces, replacing them with artistic confidence and productivity. This book links creativity to spirituality by showing how to connect with the creative energies of the universe, and has, in the years since its publication, spawned a remarkable number of support groups for artists dedicated to practicing the exercises it contains. --


She recommends two ongoing activities that will conquer blocks and self-destructive tendencies: morning pages and artist's dates. Morning pages are three pages of writing, performed daily, about anything at all. This exercise overcomes the artist's internal censor and makes writing habitual, she claims. The artist's date is a weekly block of two hours spent observing, experiencing, and sensing.

[Flo]

There is a magic to writing 3 pages.....because one often runs out of things to say, so then the good stuff comes up. My friend called it a brain dump. When I was doing it, I would write 2 pages in blue pen, then switch and write my answer in read pen........its a great process.

[JoyPath]

Love the artist's way!! It was a part of the coming together of things that led to Abe for me. (And I have a copy of Vein of Gold that has lots of great stuff in it, too!)

[Blissful Creator]

OMG Flo, I LOVED your story!!! I could feel your relief and heightening alignment in the words. I think I'm gonna have to save it on my computer for future reference if you don't mind. It reminded me of some experiences I have had like that, too, where I pivoted as you did and "all of sudden" found myself feeling really good. Thank you for sharing!

[Bastian]

I like photoshop for visualising!


Yeah, me too.

It an interesting thing that I do -quite expensive- photo retouching and enhancement jobs as a hobby.

It is always a pleasant experience because I turn trash to gold, so to speak. It is like a condensed Abraham workshop, because it involves visualization, decisions, inspiration, pleasure, creation, expectation... Everything condensed in a 10-20 minutes work!

:)
Bastian

[Flo]

Steph~ do you still do the morning pages? I have fallen out of the habit...I loved it though when I did. Hmmm.....makes me wonder if I should begin again. I too have the Vein of Gold, but could not get past the first Kingdom. How about you?

Blissful~your post made my heart sing....thanks for your kind feed-back. :love:


BTW, Artists Way is not just for writers or artists really....it is a way to live creatively, sync'ing up with the creative impulse of the Universe. Julia defines GOD as "good orderly direction"

[Playful]

I loved the crappy pond story Flo!!!!

[JoyPath]

Steph~ do you still do the morning pages? I have fallen out of the habit...I loved it though when I did. Hmmm.....makes me wonder if I should begin again. I too have the Vein of Gold, but could not get past the first Kingdom. How about you?


I have not been doing them recently, but this thread has made me remember how much I loved it when I did it too! :heart: Maybe it's a good time to get back to that... For a while I was doing most of my morning pages as morning appreciation pages where I would just go into a rampage around some random topic - THAT's what I should get into again :love:

The vein of gold was one that I did not read through. I read bits and pieces and did random exercises.

[Flo]

I have not been doing them recently, but this thread has made me remember how much I loved it when I did it too! :heart: Maybe it's a good time to get back to that... For a while I was doing most of my morning pages as morning appreciation pages where I would just go into a rampage around some random topic - THAT's what I should get into again :love:

.

me too! I feel inspired....thanks Steph and Leah and Adal (happy to see your post this morning :love:)

The artists date were an awesome part of this too.....a date with yourself. It "made" me do things I would not normally do....and it was good to be able to share with the group.Magic happened.