This number keeps popping up. When I was finishing my degree I remember I had five weeks left before I graduated, and I was burnt out. I was almost willing to throw away the five years I’d spent working on it because I had five weeks left and I did not have a single desire to keep going.
I think it’s that point that a lot of people get themselves to just before they choose a different path. One that’s less strained. (this is a bad idea)
Recently, I’ve had a few friends coming to the end of their programs in college. They all have five weeks left, are completely burnt out and want nothing to do with what they’re currently doing. They’re in that moment that you realize you’ve come too far to give up, but a lot of people do. I know these friends won’t but I can’t say that for so many other folks.
Right before the moment of daylight, when we can’t even see our hands in front of our face, that’s when we make a decision. Either stay the course or reroute. You might say, “Well come on, Mark. You’ve gone through so many semesters and years toward this, of course you’re going to finish.” It may appear a little easier to see that you should finish something like a degree, especially once you’ve put in the time. The way that it’s structured, you can almost clearly see the end. “Ok I only have these two classes and I’m done.” Even though you can see that, when you’re at that five-weeks-left-burn-out mark, five minutes seems unbearable.
Life outside of school isn’t as structured. We don’t really see things as clearly. Without this already established vision, take these classes and get this degree, we have a much harder time staying the course when things get to that five-weeks-left mark. Especially because we don’t know if it’s truly five weeks we have to endure. It could be five months or five years. Woo!… That’s depressing.
Get my new book here: Blog Book vol.2: The Demons We Meet
