Making a life-changing decision is never easy, and I should know because I made one over four months ago, but I’m getting a little ahead of myself. I never thought I’d become a teacher. I majored in English in both college and graduate school because I loved reading and was a great writer. I had dreams of becoming Editor-in-Chief of a fashion magazine, perhaps the next Anna Wintour, but by the time I was a sophomore in college, I realized that wasn’t the substantial and meaningful work I wanted to do. Unsure about what my future would entail with an English degree, I spent my summers interning at radio stations, newspapers, and, eventually, summer schools–and I flocked to teaching like a moth to a flame. It wasn’t until, perhaps, my third year of teaching that I realized that maybe it wasn’t teaching I was drawn to, but my students. I enjoyed hanging out with them, advising them, and helping them become healthy, whole, and happy individuals. But what did that look like professionally? What kind of career could I find that would allow me to do that work and get paid for it? Well, it wasn’t until a year ago or so that I learned the answer to my question: become a child and adolescent therapist. And it wasn’t until four months ago that I finally dropped everything, took a risk, applied to the number three school in the country…and got in!
Ready to Rise with Kirstin M. Williams, LCSW 
