What Makes You Happy?
Laying on the couch with a bowl-full of ice-cream on one side, a cat on the other and the whole 7-seasons of Dexter on TV? Yes, me too.
BUT what about your long term happiness? As wonderful as the above scenario is, you'll finish the box set, feel sick from the ice cream and the cat will likely leave you to pursue his own dreams of happiness.
Hands up, who here isn't exactly enthralled with their day to day life? You're living to get through work each day? You're not at the stage in life you thought you would be with life, love or goals?
It's easy to get stuck in this situation. Heck, it's downright comfortable here! It's human nature to like routine. It's safe, easy, reliable and stable. You don't worry where you're going to sleep, who you're going to meet, or (on the most part) worry where your money is going to come from. But is this comfortable wedge you've carved on the sofa of your life, one that you will be proud to look back on after 30 years as your biggest achievement?
As cliché as it is, when I'm having doubts about making a big directional change in my life, I recite the famous quote by Mark Twain:
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did".
I think he was on to something.
How You Can Move Forward
Career, Travel, Goals. I'm just throwing a few ideas out there to get you thinking.
Career
If you could do one job in the world, what would it be?
"PROFESSIONAL CAT PETTER", you cry! Wow, we have a lot in common.
But what about working for a company that makes a difference? Who here doesn't feel any satisfaction in their current job?
Whether you feel undervalued, underpaid, underworked, overworked, so bored that devising ways to pass those 8hrs of your day is the job they're actually paying you for.
Ask yourself, what would make you truly happy to go to work each day?
Here are a few ideas to get those rusty brain-cogs turning.
- Do you want to work 9-5 each day? What about doing this in a different country.
- Do you want to sell people a product they don't necessarily need? What about being an advocate for a charity or non-profit organisation that you believe in?
- Do you want to change career paths but don't know where to start? What about saving up and volunteering abroad in your new field. Companies give you serious extra bonus points for branching out, not to mention your CV standing out a mile in any application stack after working abroad.
Travel
What are the main factors/excuses stopping you from making your travel leap?
- Money
A large roadblock in many of my plans. Living in one of the most iconic tourist destinations in the world means horrendously overpriced living in this town. We're talking $18 for supermarket chicken. So plan your savings. I'm talking get a calendar, get your paycheck, chart your monthly expenses and note exactly how much you can realistically afford to save every paycheck. Keyword is 'realistic'. Budget too much, and you'll be disappointed when you fall short. To little and you will be disheartened from the starting block.
I'll write a post on the best way to budget, but for now, get planning!
- Family
They will be there when you get back They'll give you kudos for making the leap. They'll be proud of you for growing up, being confident and not hanging around in your old bedroom until you're 30.
- Friends
I'm talking bf's and gf's people. First up - Make plans together! Doesn't work?
Second up - Long distance. Not pursuing your dreams is effectively sewing the long term seed of destruction into your relationship. Whether you know it when it happens or supress it for a long time, you will resent your partner for not enabling you to achieve what is so incredibly important to you. If you are strong enough as a couple, you can make it work long distance. If you break up after realising you want different things, it's unbelievably heartbreaking, but it means you will find someone who also wants the same.
Life Goals/Bucket List
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| On the top of the world - January 2013 |
The majority of people seem to have a 'Bucket List'. A definitive list of things you want to do, see and experience before you die. Essentially a list of goals that you want to achieve in your personal pursuit of happiness. Whether you want to volunteer/work abroad, be a Director of a company, sky dive, sleep under the stars, skinny dip or write a novel, you will only achieve it if you get outta that oh-so-comfortable groove on your couch and make it happen. No one is going to do it for you. While it may seem like a far fetched dream, one that is so inconceivably far away that you will never reach it, remember that a journey of 1,000 miles starts with the first step.
So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
Love as always,
Jonesy x
