How Job Corps Has Changed My Life

By: Carolyn Adams

Before I discovered Job Corps, my life was going downhill. I hated my job and could not survive on the money I made from it. I had flunked out of college because I was too bored to pay attention to anything I thought I was not going to need in real life anyway. I was lazy, irresponsible, inconsiderate and miserable.

Job Corps helps me take responsibility for my life and the direction it is headed. I have learned to plan ahead so I can be on time and prepared for classes and meetings, as well as learned to own up to my mistakes instead of making excuses. I have learned to break bad habits and form good ones to take their place and to discipline myself that has helped me to eat right and exercise regularly. By doing this I feel better about myself and I have more self-esteem. I have begun to live by a quote I came up with while discussing friction with father and it is “Opposition is just something to push off of.”

Life in the dorms and working in my trade has helped me develop my people skills. I have learned to live with people I do not always get along with. I have learned to be professional and mature in the workplace. When I became a mentor in my advanced electrical class, I discovered how rewarding it was to be depended on and to help other people learn.

Most of all, I have learned to appreciate things more. I have had to manage my money and put my needs before my wants. Having so few belongings has helped me to be less wasteful. Now I take care of the things I have and make them last. I understand the importance of a good education and treat my teachers more respectfully because of what I have learned. I also have discovered how much I enjoy hard work.

I am not finished with Job Corps, but so far, I am healthier, happier and hopefully wiser because of it. I have taken giant leaps in my own personal growth and I am pleased with the results. Even though it is not always enjoyable, I feel that Job Corps is one of the best things that has ever happened to me and the changes it has made in my life and definitely good ones.