Some people seem to sail through life with more than their share of confidence. The rest of us have doubts.

Parental critisism can be very difficult to handle. I wanted to be a veterinarian since I was six, but all I ever got was "your grades aren't good enough". When I would bring home a B, why wasn't it an A. I know now that my father thought that by asking why I didn't get an A was his attempt at getting me to work harder. Parenting doesn't come with a manual, and sometimes parents make mistakes.

All through school, K-12th, it seemed that my grades were never good enough to escape that comment. After highschool, I took a job in a vet's office cleaning cages. That didn't go over well. "You are wasting your mind" "why do you want to do such a menial job?"

Finally, at twenty six, I went back to school. 11 years after I graduated high school. I had forgotten almost everything and had to start from the bottom up. Today, I'm a veterinarian, have a pony (another goal since i was six), and my parents are very proud.

You can break out of the mold that others make for you. i'll admit, its hard, scarey and self confidence is very difficult to get back, but if I can do it, you can too. Keep going and don't listen to anyone tell you that you aren't intelligent or can't do something.

Sam2