My primary reason for putting off writing is finally over, and here I am, using my time to enjoy life and bring you a new story. It’s been a long road, with numerous ups and downs, but the moment has finally arrived. Getting here was not easy, but it left me with several lessons that I will cherish for my whole life, not entirely related to the degree I pursued. But before getting into that, let’s back up a bit.

My Journey from Engineering to Economics

The Start at ITBA

My college adventure began in 2016 at one of Argentina's most renowned engineering schools, the Technology Institute of Buenos Aires. From a very young age, I aspired to be like Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg. For some reason, a younger version of myself thought that pursuing a software engineering degree was the right path.

As you might expect, I eventually realized that it was not necessarily the only way to achieve my dreams, and being an engineer required a passion I didn’t possess. It took me two years to understand this, and although I don’t regret a single minute spent at ITBA, I made (I hope) the right choice by leaving.

Transition to Economics at UBA

Ending that chapter was both a relief and a disappointment. I had dreamt about starting my engineering journey, so it was a surprise for both myself and my family when I decided to leave. There I was in 2018, unsure of what to do or where to invest my time next.

That’s how I ended up at the Economics school at the University of Buenos Aires. I had doubts about many things, but one thing I knew for sure was that I liked money and understanding how it works. After some research, I enrolled in an Economics degree.

Plot twist—it seems I hadn’t done my research well. If you’re an economist, you’ll know that earning a degree in Economics involves much more than just talking about money. There are many models, accounting principles, math, and statistics, but in the end, it wasn’t so bad!

I ended up loving my choice, maybe not because of what Economics students usually do, but I still found my own way. However, enjoying something is never enough to go all the way through, and if there’s one thing college taught me, it’s exactly that.

Overcoming Challenges

I remember a video on LinkedIn of a man trying to reach the top of a staircase, falling, and starting all over again from the bottom several times before reaching the top. That’s a great representation of how college felt, and having been fortunate to be somewhat successful in my professional life so far, it was painful but necessary to experience that in another aspect of my life.

In the beginning, it’s fairly easy—you are excited, classes are simple, and teachers have lower expectations for first-year students.

As time goes on, classes get more challenging, teachers become more demanding, and injustices become regular occurrences. You start developing a craving for fun, which quickly distracts you from your studies. Soon after, to keep having fun, you need more money, so you start your first job, and then school becomes a weight you carry everywhere you go.

At this stage, you question everything, but the key to success is to be consistent and keep going. There’s no easy trick, no secret formula. It’s all about keeping your objective clear and moving forward at your own pace to finally achieve the ultimate goal.

Sooner or later, you will be taking your last exam. Once you finish, you might think, “Well, it wasn’t so bad.” Once it’s over, you will realize that developing this skill will apply to everything: work, relationships, personal projects, hobbies, and anything else.

This doesn’t mean that once you choose a path, you have to foolishly follow it to the end. There are times when we choose wrongly and need to pivot, but it’s usually more about consistently putting in the work, making sacrifices, and pushing through rather than assuming a mistake and switching paths all the time.

Final Thoughts

To sum up, know that if I could do it, you can too. It’s all about being consistent, whether we are talking about school or anything else.

Good luck with whatever you are pursuing!