I tried and failed at my attempt at going back to school. But, with failure, I learned a few things that I hope to share.

I tried. Had I never taken the chance, I would always wondered what it would have been like to goto Graduate School. But, I also learned a lot of values that were more important to me than a piece of paper.

I was told to expect 5 hours a week outside of class for work. I was spending more like, 15 – 20 hours a week total. So, by spending that much time on school work, that meant that I was getting a lot less sleep than I should. Spending a lot less time with my kids and my wife.

I realized on a drive to work one day, that I needed more time with my kids, as they would not always be young and want to spend time with me. And also, in the last few weeks, we had not one, but two deaths in the family within a 26 hour period as well.

Life got in the way, but I tried and failed.

Or did I really fail?

Did I fail if I realized what was really important? Did I fail if I found what I lost? Did I fail if I needed to finally put boundaries on my time and put the importance on my family?

Depends on who you ask and what your definition of failure is. To me, I succeeded.

So, I tried and failed. But in reality, I took a chance and found what mattered more to me, is spending time with my family.