You're Not The Only Person Who Struggles with Making Decisions
Read Time: 3 minutes
I was working with an international student from Ecuador yesterday.
She had an employer who wanted to apply for a H1B work visa on her behalf. (yay!)
But they were requiring her to continue full-time CPT, which would make her lose her Post-Completion OPT eligibility. (not yay)
And look, I get it…
It’s nice to have the option to do OPT.
(If you’re unaware- OPT is Optional Practical Training, which can allow an international student to remain in the U.S. to work for up to 12 months after graduating.)
And the H1B is not guaranteed- even if the employer files for her this year, she may not get selected for the lottery. Which means that she would miss out on both OPT and the H1B.
But also…
She was literally being offered exactly what she wanted.
An opportunity at a work visa.
Maybe even sponsorship for a green card down the line.
And yet, she was still unsure.
We have an expression for this in America:
She wanted to have her cake and eat it too.
Again, I GET IT.
Taking a firm step into the unknown is SCARY.
Even if it’s towards what you’ve always hoped and dreamed for.
Because we give up some safety and security along the way.
So how do we step into the unknown without being reckless?
Let me break it down in 3 steps:
Do your research.
Important caveat here: don’t do so much research that you get ‘paralysis by analysis.’ But yes, you should have an idea about the practical nature of your goal and the steps along the way.
Find a mentor.
Another American phrase: don’t reinvent the wheel. Find someone out there who’s either already done it or a professional whose helped others through it.
Be completely honest about what you actually want.
This may actually be the toughest part because, sometimes, we don’t like the real answer.
My student earlier had her chance at her dreams.
When we worked through her inner conflict, she admitted to herself that she was stuck because she wanted the security of an extra year of work authorization (for sure) more than the chance at her dream (with no guarantee it would work out).
But then a funny thing happened…
After she said it out loud, she stopped herself.
She said that line of thinking didn’t make sense.
She said that wanted to live her life taking a chance at her dream.
And she did NOT want to let her life be determined by her fears.
Wherever you are today, my hope for you is that you’re being honest about what you really want out of life.
If you are, you’re already ahead of 90% of other people.
If you’re making progress towards getting there, you’re still ahead of most others.
And, while life isn’t a race, if you want to make that progress more quickly, I’d encourage you to find a coach, mentor, or resource to help you get there.
Even if it isn’t me- get yourself someone in your corner.
And, if it’s honestly important to you, take the change and…
Live Your American Dream.
Josh
