Im 24 Spent the last two years waiting to start my life
I’m 24. Since I was a kid, I’ve always wanted to dedicate myself to something I genuinely enjoyed and become really good at it. I played football in primary school, throughout middle and high school I got into martial arts, I loved photography and filmmaking, and I wanted to travel and see the world. I always liked learning new skills. But for one reason or another, I always stopped before giving any of them a real chance.
I graduated with a Chemical Engineering degree almost two years ago. You see, growing up in the Middle East, studying was a huge part of life. Or at least what they tell you to do if you want to be something. Ever since I remember, I always went to school at 6 in the morning and got out at three, studied until 6, squeezed 2-3 hours of what I felt like doing. It didn’t help going into uni picking one of the hardest engineering degrees out there.
When I graduated, it felt like it was summer but with no end. It was fun while it lasted, but then like every honeymoon, it was coming to an end and the weight of responsibility started catching up. Then I came to the realisation that I’ve been studying for so long I haven’t thought about what I liked in a while, so I started thinking what I enjoy and if I even still enjoy the things that I did 6 or 8 years ago.** **It felt like I’d hit pause. Since graduating, I’ve spent more time thinking about what I should dedicate my life to than actually dedicating myself to anything.
Looking back, I realised something.
If I’d spent just an hour a day during the last two years doing any of the things I’ve been thinking about, I’d probably know by now which ones I genuinely enjoy, and which ones simply aren’t for me.
Instead, I spent those two years trying to figure it out before even starting, when the only way I could’ve ever figured it out was by starting.
So that’s what I’m doing now. I’m starting.
And I will be documenting the entire journey not because I know how it goes, but because I’m figuring it out. I’ll be learning the same way most people do: YouTube, books, Reddit, asking questions, approaching people who know more than I do, making mistakes, and figuring things out as I go.
This post is part of that.
If you’ve ever dedicated years of your life to becoming good at something, anything, it being a sport, filmmaking, photography, business, music, climbing, writing, or anything.
What did the beginning actually look like?
What nearly made you quit?
And what’s something you wish someone had told you if you were where I am today? I want to hear from real people, not billionaires and millionaires doing street interviews.