I really don't see it as a waste--if you enjoyed what you were doing as you were doing it.
My analogy is the five years I spent in college. All I'd ever planned to do was be a physician. At 26--ten years after leaving home, and walking away from my family's money--I went back to school. By then I'd survived my first near-fatal illness, had a hysterectomy at 22, and hit rock bottom financially [as in, we couldn't keep the utilities on]. I waited until our daughter was in third grade, and we were on stable financial ground before tackling college.
My husband and I both worked; we paid my way through college as I went along. I rarely got more than 4 hours sleep, what with parenting, going to classes/labs, working, studying, being an A student with honors [in what's generally considered the hardest major], paying bills, taking pets to the vet, etc. (I get exhausted just
thinking about it now!)
My professors and pre-med advisors told me I'd be able to write my own ticket when it came to getting into medical school.
FIVE YEARS of that--only to end up completely changing professions!
It's too long a story to add to this already long post; suffice to say that an unexpected opportunity [programming and system administration on UNIX] knocked, and I answered the door.
I had a
wonderful, satisfying, challenging, high-paying career--completely unrelated to medicine. Do I regret the blood, sweat and tears I poured into those 5 years? Not one iota. While I was doing it, I was THRILLED.
Tired, but happy.
I'm still asked occasionally if I regret my decision not to get my MD, not to do the one thing I'd always aspired to. My response is,
unequivocally, no. I don't consider any of it--the expense, the hard work, the exhaustion, the education--a waste. It was, at the time,
exactly what I wanted to be doing.
And while pre-med's biology and calculus and organic chemistry didn't
directly apply to my ultimate profession, its logical, analytical thinking, problem solving, and time management certainly did. A waste? Never!
Are you REALLY? Think of everything you did, everyone you interacted with, every place you went, everything you experienced and learned. You wouldn't be the
you you are now without all of that.
Are you a famous, world-renowned musician? Okay, you're not, but that doesn't mean chasing your dreams was a waste...of anything.
You can ruminate over the dreams never achieved, or focus on the accomplishments you
did have, like spending your time doing what you loved.
Obviously, I'm assuming that you
did love what you were doing; I make that assumption because I can't see spending 30 years working a job you hated! If that was the case...never mind!
