For what I know, this life has no manual because what works for others may not be favourable to you. We are just living our best. We make plans ahead of tomorrow, even though some of them don't materialize or end up failing.
Let me tell you this story of something I witnessed during my time in school.
I passed through the Polytechnic phase of education where, after spending two years, one can decide to go on a break for as many years as the person wants before returning, but the minimum is one year because that one-year space is used for Industrial Training (I.T).
When we were rounding up the first two years, a lot of us promised to return and continue immediately after the one-year I.T, while some said they would come back after two to three years because they wanted to venture into other things, such as working to earn enough money or learning a skill.
During the I.T period, I didn’t do the formal training; instead, I used the period to engage in many jobs to earn money so I could have enough to return to school. The jobs weren’t formal employment; they were daily jobs, so there was no huge commitment in terms of months or years to stay. So, when it was time to return to school, I didn’t find it hard at all.
When we returned, we noticed that some of us didn’t come back. And when I reached out, I found out that some of them had been employed in companies and were earning a reasonable amount of money. They thought it wise to stay put and spend more years on the job to earn well and also gain experience before returning to school.
While some of my friends saw that decision as a wrong choice, I saw it as a perfect one, especially given the fact that these guys didn’t have sponsors for their education. Also, in a country like mine, when one sees a good opportunity, it's best advised to grab it before it disappears, because opportunities are as scarce as virgins in the land.
A gap year is something that most times comes off as a better way or a solution to a situation — just like the example I gave above. The gap year served as a means to work and gather money to tackle the next phase of academic financial demands. When some of these guys returned after two to three years, they looked so fresh as a result of swimming in money.
A gap year doesn’t only mean putting a stop to school to work for money — it could also mean the opposite, such as putting a pause on work to go back to school. I have friends who stopped working so they could go for NYSC (a kind of final stage of schooling in Nigeria). So whichever way it comes off, as long as there's a better preview, it’s a good one.
Thanks for reading.
This is my entry to Week 176, Edition 03 of the Weekly Featured contest in Hive Learners Community
Image used is mine