Life is a grindstone. But whether it grinds us down or polishes us up depends on us. – Thomas L. Holdcroft A few years ago, I found myself out of work and very dispirited. I had been applying …
From Unemployed to Self-Sufficient: My Story of Personal Transformation Read More »
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”― Mahatma Gandhi Almost two years ago I lost my job through changes in the organization I had devoted my career to. It was …
I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. – Rabindranath Tagore I was recently telling a friend of mine a story about a …
How a Mindset Shift from Fear to Love Transformed My Business Read More »
A few months ago, I was really starting to gain momentum in my life and business. At least that’s what I thought. I had just finished re-branding my website. I changed my domain name to my name and …
How I Became Unstuck and Took a Giant Leap Forward In My Life and Business Read More »
It all started when I won the lottery. Well, sort of. You see, I didn’t literally win the lottery. But you know how people say “You just won the lottery, now what will you do with your life?” (Or is that the Super Bowl?) Anyway, I won the lottery like that.
I’d just had a baby, and my salary as a social worker barely covered the cost of daycare. It didn’t add up for me to go back to work, and my husband made enough for me to be able to stay home. So I didn’t really have to go back to work. Ever.
It was fun for a while. I’d wear my apron and play Suzy-homemaker, and send my husband off for the day. But it didn’t take long for me to get bored. Goodbye kisses followed by baking cookies was soon replaced by long, long hours of boredom.
In 2006, I had a vague feeling of unease. I felt like something was missing, but I didn’t know what. I was playing poker professionally and making a good living, but I yearned for more. More fulfillment. More excitement. More purpose. More joy.
It’s been over half a decade since, and today I’m making a living doing what I love. I’m absolutely in love with the work I do and my life. But the journey there was filled with stumbling into pitfalls and getting shoved back by walls. That’s why this article is all about the mistakes I made during my path.
About ten months ago I wrote a guest post for this blog entitled 6 Things I Learned From Quitting My Job.
A lot has happened since then. I grew my blog from hundreds to thousands of subscribers, founded a content marketing agency and released a guide to freelance writing amongst other things. But most importantly, I learned a great deal. In fact, I believe that my potential at this point far outweighs my current achievements. Although I am happy with my progress to date, I believe that there is a lot more to come.
I used to play it safe. I spent years upon years living in a city I didn’t like, working in a job I loathed, and dating men who didn’t know how to love.
Essentially, I was flatlining.
Yet I stayed there – in that city, in that job, and in that relationship – because it was comfortable; it was safe.
I’ve always been creative, for pretty much as long as I can remember. My childhood was filled with arts, crafts and music, and every day was an exciting adventure of creation.
Somewhere along the way though I lost touch with my creative self. It happened slowly but surely, until one day I found myself at 21 years of age staring blankly at a computer screen filled with spread sheets wondering what on earth I was doing.
