You Are More Than An Aspiring CA(SA)
2 Min Read
I need to be honest with you this week.
2026 has been hard. Postgrad has a way of making you feel like you're constantly behind, like everyone else has it figured out and you're just scrambling. I've sat in lectures where the material felt like a different language. I've stared at my screen at 11pm trying to write this newsletter when I probably should've been studying. I've had weeks where the gym fell off, my hobbies stopped, and the only thing I managed to do consistently was show up to campus and hope something stuck.
There's this voice that creeps in. It says you're not doing enough. It says you should be further along. And when the CA(SA) journey is all you have going on, that voice gets really loud. Because if the degree is your entire identity, then a bad test or a rough semester doesn't just feel like a setback. It feels like you're failing at being you.
Sometimes I feel that. And I think a lot of us have.
So this is me saying, gently: if the aspiring CA(SA) thing is taking up all of your mental space, it might help to have something else. Not to add pressure, and definitely not at the expense of your studies. But something small. Something that reminds you that you exist outside of a syllabus.
That could be anything. Writing. Training. A side business you keep putting off. Volunteering. Learning something that has nothing to do with IFRS or tax. It doesn't need to be productive or impressive. It just needs to be yours, because often these are the things that end up blooming anyway.
For me, this newsletter became one of those things. Some weeks it flows. Other weeks, like this one, I almost didn't write anything at all. It's messy, and it takes time I don't always have. But it gives me something to think about that isn't just the next assignment. And on the hard days, that matters more than I expected.
I'm not saying everyone needs a side project. Plenty of people are doing just fine by focusing on the degree and giving it everything. That's a completely valid path. But if you're someone who feels like this qualification is swallowing you whole, maybe try giving a small part of your week to something different. Even two hours. See how it feels.
The degree is important. Protect it. But don't let it be the only thing that defines you.
Until next week,
The Journal Entry Team
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