When I was younger I never imagined myself having to work while in college. My parents painted this pretty picture that with good grades would come scholarships and endless opportunities. Yet, even with a scholarship, I found myself coming short of money my freshmen year of college. Then again, my parents didn’t imagine me leaving for school and living on my own. With rent to pay and basic every-day needs, Bright Future’s wasn’t cutting it.

My biggest concern when applying for jobs while going to school was that my grades would slip, my life would spiral out of control and I would go nowhere in life (too dramatic? It made more sense in my mind at the time). My grades were at a B average and I couldn’t imagine handling a job while also trying to keep my grades up. Yet, I knew I needed the money, I knew I needed good grades, so regardless whether I acquired a job or not, I made both happen.

In due time by my sophomore year, I had landed a job at Gordo’s Cuban Cuisine as a server. Not only did I end up successfully doing it and well because I could, but because I had the will. My grades were better than when I didn’t have a job, and I was growing accustomed to a busy and productive lifestyle.

When I say I managed to do it all not because I could, but because I had the will, I mean it’s because I wanted to. Being able to do something and wanting to go hand in hand. It’s like needing peanut butter to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Coming home at 11 PM, sometimes 12 AM from a shift put a dent in my agenda when it came to getting assignments done. I could have either stayed up, pushed through a couple hours, gotten the assignment done, and landed full credit for it, or I could have given myself the excuse that I was too tired, not done the assignment, and gone to bed. It is this percentage of people who give handling school and a job at once a bad reputation.

We can’t base our own experiences on what others say because people are different and distinct in their own ways. It is the will and the drive in an individual that makes someone who they are. You either want those good grades, or you don’t. You either eat well, or you starve a bit. But, why not do both? Why do we tell ourselves we can’t handle certain things? Giving ourselves excuses sets us up for failure before we can even imagine the success. If you really want something, you’ll make it happen no matter the means. With this effort, life will repay you in crazy ways.

Not only do I currently still juggle my serving job and go to school, but I’ve added a paid internship and writing for Odyssey. Oh, and my grades are better than they’ve ever been. Who would have thought? I’m not going to act like I wasn’t scared about taking on all these things, because I was.

However, I reminded myself, where there’s a will, there’s a way.

I want what’s good for me, I need to hustle to get to where I want to be. I need to pay rent, I have a dog to feed, I have my own needs to satisfy, I have grades to make so that I can open doors for myself, I have goals that need to be met, and it won’t come easy. The biggest mistake people make in life is thinking that things will fall into their lap and come at no price.

There is always a price to pay and even when things feel as if they get worse, they are nothing compared to the harsher realities others face every day. We complain about the smallest things and don’t know half of how bad it can really be. We need to remember where we come from and stay humble. If you didn’t come from a humble upbringing, then trust me, life will humble you. But when things start to get crazy in my own life, I remember why I’m doing it and how my time for paid off success will come. I am and will eternally be grateful for the crazy, busy, opportunistic life I lead.