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[akashiver]

An unusually sweet and reassuring piece for the Chronicle of Higher Ed. A lot of it rang painfully true for me, particularly the "I felt as if I had no future" part.

Turning 'Plan B' Into a 'Plan A' Life

"Perhaps no one who knows of me as an Oxford editor would think that is the case, but virtually everything in my life since my high-school graduation has been the result of not getting what I really wanted. To think about autobiography or personal history in a historical way, my life's course has been set by moments of contingency—when societal, economic, or familial forces collided with internal forces, usually despair, self-doubt, or personal rejection.

Without detailing what I really wanted, I will just say that I've come to appreciate that being No. 2 or lower on the hierarchy has made me who I am. That person is surely more resilient as a result, and there is extra sweetness in achieving what I have had to work hard to get."