SWEET DREAMS

As a kid I was a very ambitious young man. I started out wanting to be a police officer. My mother and grandmother strongly discouraged that. They told me I would be killed if I was a police officer. Then I figured I would be an attorney. I thought it was the next best thing to being a cop. I could be a prosecutor. Keep in mind I'm only five at this time.

As time went on I wanted to be a multi-millionaire. I planned on having a mansion, four cars (an SUV, Sports Car, Luxury Vehicle, and a Family Car), a vacation home, and my crown Jewell-a walk in freezer. I was young, what did I know? While in high school I decided that I would be the first Black President. Like I said, I was ambitious. All this would change as I came into adulthood.

When I entered into college I had started to change my mind about being a lawyer. I had done a few internships and didn't like the hours I was seeing the associates work. That was a mistake because I ended up working 60 hours a week without the payoff. Hey, what did I know? I would later decide that I wanted to be a pastor. I had a strong desire to help people and to serve God. That fell through in a painful fashion. I might touch on that later. Needless to say, many a dream has fallen by the wayside.

I was content with my marriage. That is gone. I was hoping to serve God in full-time ministry. That is gone. I was hoping to be in the 80K-100K range. That may not be gone but I ain't close. My sweet dreams have turned into beautiful nightmares. For a while I had the air knocked out of me. Couldn't dream, couldn't breath, couldn't move forward. All that is about to change.

I am hard pressed at this time to find someone close to me that isn't back in school working on a degree of some kind. I didn't have any intentions of going back to school. Not for a PhD. Not for another masters. Not for a parent/teacher conference. I wasn't going. Nevertheless, I find myself seriously contemplating returning to school.

I have argued with myself back and forth about whether I would return to school for a law degree or an MBA. I recently come to find that I don't have to make a decision between the two. I can go back and get a joint degree in both law and business. I am seriously thinking about pursuing this next level of education. Here me out on this one. I love what I do. I really do like helping people. I just can't survive on the cash flow.

I often say you can't help people and get paid unless you can prescribe a drug, administer a drug, or sell a drug. So far, I've been correct. Even if I were to climb to the top of the food chain in my professional field I would likely not crack six figures. Since I have a desire to provide for my children, establish a committed relationship, and perhaps have more kids one day, I need to produce funds. I figure a Jurist Doctorate plus an MBA should make me a pretty profitable entity.

It seems like the logical move to make. Like I said, all my friends are in school. Hence, they don't have time to hang. I might as well make this time of solitude count. I'm doing the research. Reading up on the process and programs. Talking to folks in the field and in school. I'm serious bout this man. I'll keep you posted as to what moves I ultimately make. For now, Sweet Dreams may be making a return.