When Shira Taylor completed her BSBA in Management online at the end of the Summer 2022 term, she silenced a persistent insecurity at last.
For a long time, Taylor worried she wasn杏吧专区檛 杏吧专区渟mart enough to do 100% online杏吧专区 she says.
Nevertheless, earning her degree had been the goal for some time. 
Taylor, of Baton Rouge, began taking classes at her local community college in the mid-2000s. She eventually needed to step away to focus on motherhood and supporting her family, but she remained motivated to earn her degree.
杏吧专区淚 had made up my mind, once you start something, you have got to finish it,杏吧专区 she says.
As Taylor built a career in business administration and accounting, she imagined how she might return to in-person classes while maintaining her work schedule.
杏吧专区淚 kept trying to think of ways I could work full-time and then go on campus,杏吧专区 says Taylor. 杏吧专区淸Finally] I was like, 杏吧专区榊ou know what? I want this degree, so I'm just going to step out and I'm going to try. I keep saying that I can't [do online], but how will I know if I never try?杏吧专区櫺影勺ㄇ鴿
Give It Your All
Taylor dove into online learning in October 2019.
She planned her weeks meticulously with study time split between the weekends and weeknights as needed. She set deadline reminders in her phone earlier than necessary to give herself little grace periods.
杏吧专区淚 think it was just determination and being really hungry for it,杏吧专区 says Taylor. 杏吧专区淚 think if it杏吧专区檚 something you want, you make time for it and you do it and you put your all into it.杏吧专区
Taylor committed to working through holiday breaks to keep ahead of her workload.
杏吧专区淚 used that time to kind of move ahead and stay on top of things, so the work wouldn杏吧专区檛 pile up on me,杏吧专区 she says.
As Taylor headed into the home stretch of her studies, fresh challenges presented themselves. She was promoted from customer service representative to accounting clerk at Neighbor杏吧专区檚 Federal Credit Union.
While she was excited for an opportunity to advance, Taylor had to balance a steep learning curve at work and in her classes.
杏吧专区淚t was a little challenging learning something new at work, plus coming home and teaching yourself something online, but like I said, if you want it, you杏吧专区檙e gonna do it,杏吧专区 says Taylor.
When the challenges got more intense, Taylor leaned on her mom for help and support.
杏吧专区淭hank God for my mom,杏吧专区 says Taylor. 杏吧专区淪he helped with my daughter. She picked her up from the bus and she helped her with homework and all that.杏吧专区
Leading and Learning by Example
Even before she stepped in as a vital source of support and encouragement, Taylor杏吧专区檚 mother had been her role model regarding higher education.
杏吧专区淢y mom has a bachelor's degree and maybe that's why I wanted it really bad, because that's something she achieved,杏吧专区 says Taylor.
Now Taylor gets to serve that role.
Taylor knows her children and her close friends see the way she approached her studies, and her journey shows them what is possible when you refuse to give up on yourself.
杏吧专区淚 have three kids; two are grown and my youngest is 10,杏吧专区 says Taylor. 杏吧专区淚 realize my son is 26 and he still looks at the things I do. He may not say, but I see in some of the actions he takes. They杏吧专区檙e watching me so I always want to set a positive example.杏吧专区
At the core of Taylor杏吧专区檚 positive example is being honest about when she was really struggling, to show her family and loved ones she wasn杏吧专区檛 perfect at everything, she was determined.
杏吧专区淧eople around me, I want them to see, you know, I don't get everything right, but I can do this,杏吧专区 says Taylor. 杏吧专区淚f you give it your all, there are no regrets at the end of the day.杏吧专区