It sounds like you may be struggling with the sunk cost fallacy. Here are some tips on how to make the most out your past efforts:

1) Have your cake and eat it too – It may not be an either/or situation. Think about the skills you have learned or demonstrated at work that are relevant to your passion. Is there some way to meld them together?

2) Having trouble moving on? If you know that what you are studying or doing professionally isn’t right long-term but are having trouble making a change; just remember that degrees, training, and work experience are supposed to broaden your your opportunity, not limit it.

3) See it as insurance – Use the education and skills you developed as an insurance policy, something to fall back on, rather than a liability.

4) Reframe the end goal. You might be feeling like you are wasting what you’ve accomplished because you are viewing it as a stepping stone to something bigger. Appreciate the steps along the journey, not just the final destination.

Example Time:

Suppose you went through an MBA program because you wanted to be an executive, and now you are debating whether to follow your dream to become a landscape artist. The biggest thing holding you back is the feeling that you would be wasting your degree. You can focus on what you got out of the MBA, for example: the knowledge, stimulation, friendships, network, and memorable experiences.

Focus on everything you have gained. Even if the experience was negative, try to frame it as a self-discovery process where you learned some valuable lessons. The more you are able to make peace and find meaning in the experience, the more readily you will allow yourself to move on if that indeed feels right. You will have stepped back and be in better perspective.

Find meaning, not mistakes. If you are hard on yourself for the “mistake” you made investing all that time, money, and energy into what you’ve accomplished so far, then you are more likely to be attached to it and not move on due to the sunk cost. Strategize and leverage – Strategize and see how you can leverage your old background in services of your new goal.

For example, your MBA experience might help you better market yourself as a landscape artist, you maybe able to establish a unique niche with people with a similar background. Or perhaps you can leverage the network you’ve built to help your business. Perhaps your old degree can gain you credibility even if it doesn’t apply directly to your line of work.