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Choose your journey

  • Writer: Nour El Tamimy
    Nour El Tamimy
  • Oct 23, 2020
  • 3 min read

This is my journey. But it could be yours or anyone else’s for that matter.

Maybe you can learn something and it may give you comfort, feeling you’re not alone. When you’ve reached your goal, it’s always easy to talk about the road. But the ride, the ride is a roller coaster with ups and downs.

My journey began exactly 5 years and two weeks ago. I had just finished school and was moving to Germany to study. Moving away from home was never my plan, but when I got the opportunity, I took it like every 18 year old would, thinking it was an everlasting vacation. I didn’t really know what I wanted to study, but I was good at math, or so I thought.

I decided to enrol at LMU, one of the oldest universities in Germany, and study actuarial science. Two weeks in, I already knew this isn’t what I wanted to study for the next few years. The difficulty of the studies and the realisation that I was all on my own put a huge physical and mental stress on me.

I didn’t fit in with the people at my university and didn’t make friends. By the time Christmas came around, I had also gained weight which put a huge burden on my self-esteem. At that point, I knew I was changing my major. Still, I decided to take the exams and studied for two months straight. I took three and failed one.

Nothing was going how I imagined. My whole world was falling apart. I must admit school was so easy for me. I had the time of my life and got the grades. Never, not even in my worst nightmares, did I think I could fail a class. So when I did, it hit me hard.

The next few weeks, I spent lying in bed struggling with my thoughts. I thought about going back to Egypt and imagined how much easier everything would have been. Finally, when I decided to start applying for another major, I was told that I had to wait until the beginning of the year to do so.

It felt like another setback. I was just ready to pack my things and move to Alaska. I didn’t want to face anyone back home, feeling like all eyes were on me which let me tell you was all in my head. I would be one year behind, when I was always on top of my class.

At that point, giving up seemed so easy but I knew I had to give it my all. So, two days before the retake exam, I was sitting on my desk again studying. I still knew I was going to change majors but I couldn’t do so defeated. I wanted to prove to myself that I can do this even if it’s not going to count for my GPA. And I did it. Hard work does pay off, even if sometimes delayed.

I had to take the next semester off. And I guess that was a break for my soul.

Management and Technology was my new start. I changed to the Technical University in Munich and decided that that was the beginning. I would leave the last year behind me and choose my journey.

I made friends who turned into family, traveled to countries and continents we only see on TV, made memories for life, finished my major in two years with the rest of my classmates while working part-time at Abercrombie & Fitch. I even decided to continue my studies and complete a Masters degree, while working as a working student at the Boston Consulting Group.

If I could go back, I think I would have taken a little more time and enjoyed the journey for longer.

Changing your major -if you're unhappy- won’t change your life. You have to take control and make the change. Don’t let one decision define your life. Take your time. Find yourself and your interests. Reinvent yourself. Make a change and take in the whole experience. Don’t let other peoples journey influence or pressure you. You never know, what might be waiting behind the next door.

If you’ve read this far, I want to tell you that after finishing my studies, I’m currently choosing my next journey. But this time I’m not afraid anymore. I hope you aren’t too!

Love,

Nour



 
 
 

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