I left Medicine...

 I left Medicine. But for most of my life, that was all I ever wanted. It was the fancy thing only the brightest minds could afford to do. In grade 12, I became deeply interested in Physics. There’s a special kind of high that comes from realizing how simple grade 9 concepts like gravity play out on a cosmic scale.

During freshman year, I thought, “Nah, who’s going to stay at university for seven years? I want to have a car within three years.” I was a delusional member of Alpha Breakthrough (a network marketing company, MLM), and I really meant it when I said I would have a car in three years.

When it came time to choose a field, I was so confused about what to study that I tried Ali Abdaal’s(Productivity YouTuber) exercise for discovering what you want to do in life. I don’t remember it well, but I recall it had a set of questions with examples, and I concluded that my passion was Mechanical Engineering. Duh, passion is an illusion.

I consulted family members, students from different departments, and graduates from various fields. Eventually, I decided to join Medicine. It wasn’t a solid decision, though. I didn’t even study for the CoC exam. It wouldn’t have been a failure if I hadn’t joined, but since my previous grades were good, I passed.

At different times, I came up with plans to leave Medicine. And sometimes, plans to enjoy it. One of those plans was to join another university abroad, but that failed. For most of the time, I just wanted to drop out.

I’ve come to believe that a college education isn’t necessary to accomplish great things. Once a person learns how to teach themselves, they should be free from curricular learning.

 There are many fields I believe everyone should have a basic understanding of . Social sciences like finance, business, psychology... and coding. I consider them a sauce, an addition, to a bigger dish. But they’re mostly available online for free, so there’s no need to pursue them professionally.

After reading the book The Millionaire Fastlane, I decided to start learning coding right away. Then I read Think Again by Adam Grant, a book about critical thinking and the decisions we don’t make but should.

After that, I told my family that I don't want to continue Medicine. Surprisingly, they left the decision to me. This was around March. I asked the Computer Science and Pre-Engineering departments to allow me in. It was too late. Since then, my grades had all been C’s. Doesn't matter at all as far as it isn't an F or NG.

Now, I’m studying psychology, and my main focus is programming. My dream is to launch a global startup that genuinely improves lives.

The future is blurry. It is full of half-formed plans and uncertain choices. Still, as Rophnan says, “ተስፋን ይዣት አለቅም”. With God, I believe a better future awaits.

Thank you for reading this far. Love you, as always.🥰