I lasted three semesters at MIT before dropping out, which was the ultimate unforgivable sin in the Harper family. The day I told them, my father actually walked out of the room.
“We have spent a fortune on your education,” my mother said, her voice ice cold. “What do you plan to do now? work at a coffee shop.”Parental support groups
“I have a job offer from a tech startup,” I explained. “The experience will be worth more than the degree.”
“A startup,” my father scoffed when he returned. “Those glorified garage projects that disappear in 6 months. This is the future you are choosing over an MIT education.”
No matter how I tried to explain the opportunity, they could not see past the lack of prestige, the absence of a degree.
From that point forward, I became the cautionary tale, the example of potential wasted. At family gatherings, relatives would ask about me in hush tones, and my parents would respond with vague statements about me finding my way.James, meanwhile, completed Harvard with honors, then Harvard Business School, before landing a prestigious position at a global consulting firm. He became increasingly uncomfortable around me, as if my failure might somehow be contagious.
The final straw came at my cousin’s wedding when I was 24. I overheard my mother telling my aunt Vivien that they were so worried about Allison, and at least we have James to make us proud. That night, I made the decision to leave Boston entirely.
I had been saving money from my startup job and had built connections in the tech industry. Silicon Valley was calling, and I needed to answer.
“You are running away,” my mother accused when I told them I was moving to San Francisco.
“I am running towards something,” I corrected her. “Something you cannot see.”
