The dichotomy of leaving for b-school

Friday was my last day as an employee of Recycled Paper Greetings. I'm trying to let that sink in a bit, but the feeling is odd. It's an interesting dichotomy that I've got going on: On the one hand I think 'oh my God; I'm leaving this all behind' on the other hand 'Oh my God; I'm heading towards a great place that will be both exciting and full of opportunity'

Unemployed: Well, what can I say - it's not a great feeling. But, should it be - not under normal circumstances, no, however my circumstances are anything but normal. I have (let me rephrase; had) a great thing at RPG. I had a lot of cool coworkers, a great boss, fun projects to work on and a steady workload, great social life outside of work with friends and family all in/around Chicago. Oh yeah, and a paycheck. So, now for the next few weeks I've got none of that. Not that I won't be staying in touch with my coworkers and my boss (truly friends), but its just peculiar to leave that all behind ON PURPOSE.

BUT, I'm NOT leaving IT (work, friends, etc.); I'm taking a big step in improving myself and my career. I'm going to be starting as a first year MBA student in just about 2 weeks at the Kelley School of Business. Now let me let THAT sink in...THAT feels good. Not odd, not peculiar, not particularly scary (though everything is a risk), but GOOD. I've been aiming for this point in my life for a long time. I'm quite confident that this time in my life is going to be some of the best years of my life; definitely some of the most exciting. I'll have the opportunity to entrench myself into the program's offerings. Everything from clubs, leadership opportunities, leading experts/professors, the chance to travel (or study) abroad, etc. will be at my finger tips. And I plan to experience it all.

For these reasons the hand that is excited (rather than thinking about leaving another good thing behind) wins out. It's not that I'm leaving something good; its that I'm heading towards new opportunities and experiences. I'll have plenty of time to work again (and make money), but for now, the time is to learn and grow and experience new and exciting things during my time as an MBA student.