Self-Made: my Journey

Don't let anything hold you back on your path and make use of your opportunities and abilities.

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You might have already gotten a glimpse of my journey in the “About Me” section, so you may find some details repeated here. However, my main goal is not to tell my story but to show how I made decisions, overcame obstacles, and seized opportunities on my personal path to becoming who I am today.
This article is mainly meant to encourage you to pursue your own goals, no matter how hopeless a situation may seem at times.

Sure, I had a solid starting point, which is already an important prerequisite not everyone has. I didn't come from a wealthy family by any means, but I always had the opportunity to pursue my interests and attend a decent school.
Therefore, I don't claim to have made it from "zero to hero." Nonetheless, I have had some experiences that I'd like to share to offer tips and motivation.

So, let's get started.

School was a tedious topic for me, at least until the ninth grade. I was generally interested and actually enjoyed school. But I was simply lazy. I always found something better to do instead of studying, which obviously did not positively impact my grades.
So, I managed to get through until the eighth or ninth grade – it worked out in hindsight, but if you're still in school: start disciplining yourself early and invest in your education! Even if you can get through by just scraping by, training your brain early will make it easier for you to learn new things later in life.
When you're learning in school, nobody tells you that it's not just about passing the next test. You can influence the development of your brain here.

I realized this by the ninth grade at the latest, or rather, I discovered that gaining knowledge is fun and it feels good to be able to talk about various topics and expand your skills.
After successfully completing my high school diploma, I initially studied economics, but I dropped out after three semesters. On the one hand, it was too theoretical for me – I came from a business high school and found the specializations there highly interesting – on the other hand, I had failed core subjects due to lack of studying. More on the reason later, but first, another important insight: sometimes you have to abandon a path if it doesn't lead to the "right" goal.
You might know the term "sunk costs" – you've already invested too much in something to give up, so you keep going, even though it brings you no benefit in the end. For me, those were the three semesters. I wouldn't say I lost that time; I certainly learned a lot from it.
Primarily, I realized that I needed to study something else. It would have been worse if I had kept fighting to the end, had no fun, and ended up with a degree in a subject, after who knows how many semesters and with what grades.

Find out what you're passionate about because that's where you'll excel and be happy.

Since my heart had always been in law, I had also enrolled in law studies. However, I didn't get a spot at the start of my studies. During my three semesters of economics, I realized that I no longer had the desire to work in a large law firm (or ideally my own) and represent clients in court à la "Suits." Those three semesters helped me reconsider my decision. I found it much more exciting to work in a company's legal department. Additionally, during the early days of my studies, I heard many traumatic stories from law students – after 10 semesters of study, failing the first state exam twice means giving up the dream of becoming a lawyer. By chance, I discovered the business law degree, which can be studied at the bachelor's and master's level.
The combination of company-related law courses with economic components like accounting, corporate management, and corporate governance completely fascinated me.

Once I found my ideal course of study, I completed it with a Master of Laws (LL.M.). The takeaway is that you should invest a lot of time in self-reflection. "Search your feelings," as Vader might say – it doesn't quite fit thematically but gets to the point.
Think about what you enjoy, what you're good at, what intrinsically motivates you, and what you enjoy doing in your free time. If you can choose a field based on that, in which you also want to work professionally, you have many advantages. You can motivate yourself much better for tasks, even if they are hard. You don't just see the studies or the job as a means to earn money but also as an opportunity to develop yourself and have fun. Ideally, your job is also your favorite hobby.
And if you enjoy doing something, your body releases endorphins, making you happy and satisfied.

Overcoming obstacles through discipline.

During my studies, I worked a lot, often during semester breaks, but also during semesters as a working student in various companies. This is the reason why I didn't have enough time to study for my essential exams. I worked a lot to pay for my studies. In that sense, one thing led to another.
I don't see that as a disadvantage at all. I didn't choose to work, I would have liked to go to the lake or student parties with my classmates. Moreover, it cost a lot of stress and effort; sometimes I didn't know how I could continue my studies.
So should I cut back on my job to study? Because if I don't get a good degree, all the studying and working won't help me. And yet, I had to finance my studies somehow. This often led to conflicts, making the studies not always enjoyable or easy for me.

Nevertheless, I learned a lot from it, both important soft skills and hard skills. Discipline is a logical byproduct because without it, I wouldn't have been able to manage both simultaneously (I will publish a separate article on discipline).
It's also a test of maturity because you have to organize your time well to master studies and job simultaneously.
You also learn a lot in these jobs, whether it's communication and customer contact, like in my side job at a gas station, or humility because you experience in your holiday job in shift work what physical exertions many people have in their jobs.
Proper financial management is also a very important side effect; I already started my reserve system here (more on that in a separate post).
Overall, you can practice discipline, punctuality, respect, and politeness. But when you do not only "simple" part-time jobs to earn money, you can also develop your hard skills.

Fortunately, there is the possibility to work as a student trainee in Germany, which is not possible in many countries. You support a team in a company with their daily tasks during your studies, usually with twenty hours a week.
Of course, these tasks, especially at the beginning, are not particularly groundbreaking. But you already get interesting insights into processes and the daily business of a company, make contacts for your professional future, and already have a foot in the door for your career start.
The more you work your way in time and professionally, the more interesting and extensive the tasks can become, allowing you to learn some hard skills that some of your competitors fresh out of college still have to catch up on.

I spent most of my time at (today) Rolls-Royce Solutions, as a student trainee in Emission Compliance. I liked it so much there that I wrote my bachelor's thesis on "Employee Liability for Regulatory Violations" internally and continued as a student trainee during and until the end of my studies.
In addition to the tasks that arose there, which got me involved early in creating reports or presentations, I also learned a lot about how a large company works.

So, I definitely recommend, whether you have to or not, look for a job during your studies, preferably also as a student trainee in a suitable field. Because, ideally, you can start there right after your studies.
That's how it went for me: even before my graduation, I had my employment contract in hand, and that's when my journey began. Because I was lucky to be supported from the beginning.

Luck plays a big role in your journey.

Another insight I have gained in my career so far. Despite all the adversities I had, I also had a lot of luck, which turned everything positive. As I said, I often had to put in a lot of effort and discipline, but without some fortunate turns, my path might have taken a different direction. This brings me to two quotes:

1. "The higher we are placed, the more humbly we should walk" - Cicero (?)
   I find this quote very appropriate here because I am fortunate to have grown up in a country and at a time and in a certain environment where I had the opportunities to develop as I did. I try to be aware of this and want to help others with my experiences.

2. "You need luck in life to get ahead, but without diligence, no luck in the world will help you" - My grandfather
   I bring up this quote here because, on the one hand, due to my opportunities, I not only have the chance but also a certain obligation to make something of my life.
   On the other hand, I have also done a lot to get to where I am today. And since this post is partly meant to encourage and inspire you to fight for what you want, it's very fitting.

On the one hand, you have to be aware that not everyone has the same opportunities, and precisely because of that, you should make the best use of your chances and pursue your goals with diligence and discipline.

For me, an important moment of luck was that I had the ideal team and a supervisor right at the beginning of my career who supported and promoted me. He knew about my background and ambitions and placed me in positions where I could be visible, gave me tasks that challenged me, and was also my coach on leadership and career topics.
After a few months, I took on staff tasks for the department, became deputy team leader, and was early confronted with leadership and personal development. This time was crucial for much of what has occupied me since then, currently defines me, and drives me forward on my journey.
I learned a lot and am still on my path of continuous personal development. There, I (re)discovered and expanded my enthusiasm for leadership, coaching, and working with people.
Thanks to these fortunate circumstances, I was able to build a good network of sponsors, mentors, and coaches and am motivated to continue moving forward on my path.

Have the courage to explore the unknown!

After four years in this position, I was looking for an opportunity to develop further. In such a large company, you can look for new challenges internally. So I switched to a field that was completely foreign to me.
As a lawyer, I feel comfortable where others only sigh and sometimes even react amazed, "isn't that dry and boring?" I wanted to try something where I didn't feel comfortable – or at least didn't know if I could feel comfortable.
So I switched to corporate strategy, evaluating technology projects and handling their public funding.

Initially, I struggled with whether I should really take this step. I was doing great in my position, had many exciting tasks, great colleagues, was in a department with (for me) exemplary leaders. And I had my special tasks to develop myself.
So why leave? Because sometimes you have to leave when things are too good to develop further. I didn't know if I would progress as well in the new area, with the new tasks, and a different environment, and I even feared taking a step back in my development.
But I thought, if I don't try it now, I will never find the answer. So, to get to know the company from a different perspective and also to step out of my comfort zone, I switched.

No matter how such a step ultimately affects, you have to have the courage to gain new experiences, even if you're afraid of it. Of course, that doesn't mean you should leave your dream job. But if you want to explore new horizons, don't let uncertainty hold you back. Be brave and accept that you can be wrong with your decision.

Making and accepting "wrong" decisions.

Just as some people question how I want to be a lawyer, I have discovered that I cannot be an engineer or technician. After more than a year in my new role, I realized that I need to return to my roots professionally.
Even in this position, I learned a lot again; I was allowed to "learn to swim" right from the start and realized that I can keep my head above water.
I gained many insights into technical topics that I didn't understand much about before, and I also realized that a company is like a country made up of many small parts, all with their own rules, culture, and processes.
I also learned here that the leadership culture I perceived as so exemplary in my first area is not practiced everywhere. That doesn't mean it's bad, but different. This gave me many new insights into leadership and coaching.

Overall, I realized that these tasks would not make me happy. I mentioned at the beginning: you should do what interests you and what you're good at.
So I decided to work with legal requirements again. I didn't go back to my old department, but I have the opportunity to do what interests me in a different position.

Did I make a mistake, a "wrong" decision? I don't think so. Of course, I gave up a lot from my old position, and I don't know where I would be today if I hadn't switched.
On the other hand, as I said, I learned a lot, made new contacts again, and understand the company from a different perspective.

Therefore, I see it as a chance to move forward because who knows where my new position will take me, which I might never have taken without the first switch.
The realization is to accept "wrong" decisions as an opportunity to develop further and accept that life always offers new possibilities.

Because the product, among other things, is this blog.

As mentioned earlier, all of this ultimately led to me running this blog today and hopefully providing you, the readers, with interesting thoughts or helping you on your journey.
Therefore, I hope for many comments and discussions on my posts because, while we learn best through our own experiences, I can say from my own experience that philosophizing and discussing topics is equally important and useful. Plus, it's just exciting!

If you like, join my community by signing up as a "Seeker" for free or as a "Finder" with a small donation. I would love to see you as a regular reader on the blog and look forward to your comments on my posts.

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