))
The Military, Motivation, and Doing College All Over Again
Manage episode 505522627 series 2948123
After dropping out of college the first time, I figured higher education just wasn’t for me. Then I joined the Army—and suddenly, there I was, back at it again. Only this time, the motivation was completely different. Providing for my son lit a fire under me. I went from “College? Again?” to “Let’s go. Earn the promotion. Get the paycheck. Buy the diapers.”
Back then, online education carried a heavy stigma, but I made a pact with myself: if I was going to do this, I’d do it all the way. Read every lesson. Watch every lecture. Prove that this path was just as valid as sitting in a classroom.
In this episode, I share how I turned that “second chance” into an opportunity, earning my associate’s and bachelor’s degrees through discipline, focus, and sheer determination. It wasn’t glamorous, but it gave me the confidence I lacked the first time around. And it taught me that while an external motivator can get you started, the real growth and sustainment of that growth comes from within.
✨ Preorder my debut novel The Ordinary Bruja here: haveacupofjohanny.com
📧 Email: [email protected]
📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja
📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny
If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.
Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.
https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/
It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.
If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.
🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/
Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.
Chapters
1. Introduction: Starting Again (00:00:00)
2. Why I Joined the Army (00:01:42)
3. Motherhood Changed My Priorities (00:03:45)
4. Online School and Making a Pact (00:08:25)
5. From Nursing to Business Degree (00:15:32)
6. Finding My Motivation and Conclusion (00:19:30)
168 episodes
Share
