Ask yourself the hard questions. If you are currently making good money doing a job you love, weigh whether there is really anything to gain by enrolling in college courses. Take inventory of what you have already accomplished and determine if going to college will really improve the quality of your life.
Research whether obtaining a degree would really help your job advancement, as many successful careers have been built by putting in time and growing with the company. Avoid risking your financial stability by quitting an established job to become a full time student. Instead; find out if your job will offer incentives like tuition reimbursement and increased pay for completion of courses.
Keep track of employment trends in your job field. Looking online or in trade journals can provide insight into changes that may affect your job security, and which may make a return to college necessary. For instance, "New York Times" writer Tamar Lewing reports, that "the 2009 unemployment rate of college graduates 25 and older was 4.6 percent, compared with 9.7 percent for high school graduates," suggesting that in hard times college can increase employment prospects.
Make a considered choice. Going to college just to see if you can do it will put an overwhelming strain on your family, who will have to make sacrifices for you. Making sure that your family will be able to pick up the slack and keep the household running is necessary, as it is easy for those unaccustomed to academic life to underestimate the amount of time and energy it takes to complete degree coursework.