01/14/2022
👉🏾The Number 1 Thing I Wish I Knew During Graduate School in Canada👈🏾
Graduate school in Canada was nothing short of being interesting. Imagine arriving in a new country where the climate is the exact opposite of where you are from. Consider classes starting at 8 am and it’s snowing outside, you have to take a bus at a bus stop that’s minutes away. I kid you not, I questioned my decision several times over. However, I persevered, like many other immigrants who came to Canada to pursue graduate degrees. I, like the others, have done my best and I am proud.
Truth is, the journey was challenging and in retrospect, there’s one thing I wish I knew during graduate school.
That was how to “GRANT MYSELF GRACE”
This is true for many of us, in all areas of our lives, whether it be at work, as parents, in our personal and professional lives.
When we grant ourselves grace, we are really just taking care of ourselves mentally and lending support to our overall well-being. It is about understanding what is in our control and releasing that which we cannot control and then moving forward.
There were moments throughout graduate school that I was very critical of myself and had unrealistic expectations especially after the birth of my daughter. Truth is, things changed at that moment and had to change. Had I known how to grant myself grace, I would have been more understanding towards myself especially when I made a mistake or couldn’t show up how I would have wanted to.
No one is perfect and even a carefully thought out and executed plan will still have obstacles and hurdles to get over. That’s just life.
Pursuing studies is challenging and doing so as an immigrant makes it even more challenging. Therefore when you find you are becoming too critical of yourself, take a moment to grant yourself grace. It is the only way to make sustainable changes that will have a positive impact on your goals, mental health and overall well-being.
I will keep granting myself grace and moving forward.
Comment 🙏🏾 if you intend to do the same.
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