December 29, 2020, I drove to The Forum in Chandler to enroll in real estate school as part of my bigger vision. With the start of a brand new year and new quarter, it was time for yet another new adventure. Since I was helping realtors to build their personal brand as part of my COVID pivot, I figured I could better relate to them being one, too. I also learned of the perks which made it a no-brainer.

On January 11, 2021, I decided to really focus my efforts on this rather than bringing on new clients, and I set the intention that I was going to to pass the test by my kiddos’ spring break in March. I took my first class out of 18. Five hours of Zoom every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 8:20am to 1:30pm like clockwork. If I missed one or it fell on a Monday holiday, it pushed my timeline back a couple more days.

I created this simple “get out of jail” index card and taped it to my wall to keep me focused and sane. Truthfully, the best part of the day was being able to cross off another day as I inched toward the finish line. One day done. Two days done. Three, four, all the way to lucky number 18 which I hit on February 23, 2021.

I gave myself a little less than a week to cram it all in. I never studied so hard in my life, but I was one determined gal. On Monday, March 1, 2021, I signed up and took the school test passing with a 79%. With the school test now behind me, I had one more 180 question test to take. The state test to officially get my license. Speeding up my timeline by a few days, I signed up to take the state test at 6:30am on Wednesday, March 3, 2021 and I PASSED! Four hours of test taking, a few “what the heck is this” questions I had to majorly guess on and when I finished and the test representative told me I made it, I did what I always do…a happy dance paired with a “wahoo” in the lobby. Yeah, I was a wee bit excited.

The following Wednesday, I was celebrating this big win with my family on an eight-day vacay to Cancun, Mexico and visited some places with my recipe checklist, and the only thing I thought of was this every single day, “What beach chair shall I sit at today?”

Sometimes when we look at a huge feat like going back to school and bettering our lives, we stare at it in awe wondering how we’ll ever make it the top. My advice? Set your intention, focus and set a date. Break it down. Take it one day at a time. Enjoy the process and before you know it, you’ll accomplish and achieve what you started and let me tell you, it feels pretty dang good.

Rule of Life Lesson #138: