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At 52 I went back to university and the fear nearly stopped me
Spent twenty years pulling espresso shots and telling customers about my plans to go back to school someday. Someday. Kept saying it while colleagues moved on and younger staff got promoted over me. Last autumn I finally enrolled in a part-time business degree through a Dublin university. First lecture I walked in and everyone else looked about twenty-two. Sat there frozen thinking I had made a horrible mistake. My hands were actually shaking holding the pen. Went home that night and told my husband I was dropping out. He just made me tea and said he thought I would stick with it. That quiet belief meant more than any motivational poster. Three months in and I still feel out of place. My study notes look like coffee orders scrawled on napkins half the time. My tech skills are rubbish compared to the younger students. But I handed in my first proper assignment last week and got a solid B-minus. Not glamorous. Not inspiring. Just real progress from someone who almost let fear win. The degree might not change everything. Might not lead to some big career pivot. But proving to myself I could start something this scary at my age? That part already matters.
#inspiration
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Spent twenty years pulling espresso shots and telling customers about my plans to go back to school someday. Someday. Kept saying it while colleagues moved on and younger staff got promoted over me. Last autumn I finally enrolled in a part-time business degree through a Dublin university. First lecture I walked in and everyone else looked about twenty-two. Sat there frozen thinking I had made a horrible mistake. My hands were actually shaking holding the pen. Went home that night and told my husband I was dropping out. He just made me tea and said he thought I would stick with it. That quiet belief meant more than any motivational poster. Three months in and I still feel out of place. My study notes look like coffee orders scrawled on napkins half the time. My tech skills are rubbish compared to the younger students. But I handed in my first proper assignment last week and got a solid B-minus. Not glamorous. Not inspiring. Just real progress from someone who almost let fear win. The degree might not change everything. Might not lead to some big career pivot. But proving to myself I could start something this scary at my age? That part already matters.
#inspiration
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I stopped waiting to feel motivated and things got easier.
What finally gets you moving?
For years I treated motivation like the weather. I’d wake up, check how I felt, and decide if today was a “go” day. Most days weren’t. I run a few small companies now, and I almost never feel like doing the hard stuff. What changed was tiny. I made a rule that I only have to start for ten minutes, and if I still hate it after that, I’m allowed to quit. I almost never quit. Turns out the feeling shows up after I start, not before.
I think a lot of us are stuck waiting for a spark that only comes from moving. Sounds obvious. It took me way too long to see it anyway. So I’m curious. What’s the one small rule or trick that gets you off the couch on days when you feel nothing at all? And did it stick, or do you keep having to find a new one?
#inspiration
What finally gets you moving?
For years I treated motivation like the weather. I’d wake up, check how I felt, and decide if today was a “go” day. Most days weren’t. I run a few small companies now, and I almost never feel like doing the hard stuff. What changed was tiny. I made a rule that I only have to start for ten minutes, and if I still hate it after that, I’m allowed to quit. I almost never quit. Turns out the feeling shows up after I start, not before.
I think a lot of us are stuck waiting for a spark that only comes from moving. Sounds obvious. It took me way too long to see it anyway. So I’m curious. What’s the one small rule or trick that gets you off the couch on days when you feel nothing at all? And did it stick, or do you keep having to find a new one?
#inspiration
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