In honor of Thanksgiving I wanted to take a minute and discuss a few things I’m extremely grateful for. Let’s start with the immediates; my family, my friends (who are more like an extended family) the roofs over our heads, the shoes on our feet and everyone’s health.
The most recent addition to my list is this new health and fitness journey I’m on and everyone on it with me. Taking it one step further and stripping it down - I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to start over. F Scott Fitzgerald once said:
‘Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over.”
Starting over is terrifying - the uncertainty, the newness, the isolated feelings, the pressures (internal and external)...just to name a few things associated with a new beginning. So many of us follow the same path - graduate high school, attend college, get the first job in our field of choice - stay in said field our entire lives and then we retire and really “enjoy life.” I am not saying this is right OR wrong, all Im saying is at 18 years old when I chose “Information Design and Corporate Communications” as my major at Bentley I had NO IDEA what I would actually do with it. Has an 18 year old actually experienced enough things to make this decision? Does one actually become a Corporate Communicator? I digress…
There were bits and pieces of my major that were SPOT ON in regards to what I liked or envisioned I would enjoy and be good at. Truth Circle - I wanted to be a radio DJ. (I’ll give you a minute to judge then let us move on!) The media field is HARD to get into and if somehow you find your way into an Internship the turnover rate once you pass the entry level gigs is slim to none. Knowing this - after my first internship at Magic 106.7 - I took a sales coordinator job in National Radio Sales. Fast forwarding because nobody needs the history lesson - I jumped to TV and then to online where I stayed for a majority of my time in the “big girl world.”
I was not sure if this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life BUT I did know I was good at it. My positions ran the gamut and relatively quickly I advanced to Director - running point on a pretty large team. As I go through this virtual resume it seems like an eternity ago or even someone else’s life. I swear I’m going somewhere with this...
My point is this - My life was “set” if I wanted it to be. I had worked my butt off and built myself up to the most ideal situation possible - the money was amazing, the job was challenging AND rewarding and the flexibility that came with it all allowed me to work from home more than most. Everything was perfect. Everything except this inner voice that was screaming “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?!?!!?!?!??!” That’s it though - it never gave further instructions (that would be too easy). So I would go through the motions knowing deep down that something different was calling me.
Sometimes when things seem SO TERRIFYING and SO OVERWHELMING I stop and partake in my favorite activity EVER - making a list. Weirdo alert - List making is legit fun to me. Seems super elementary - but once you break everything down into smaller tangible facts/tasks even the biggest things are easier to understand and/or achieve.
So what do we do with this - whats the takeaway?
You are constantly changing and growing and as you do so will your priorities. That’s ok. Listen to yourself. Believe in yourself and most importantly surround yourself with others who support you. There are so many cheesy memes I could post here - and God knows I love cheesy IG quotes, but seriously - it is NEVER too late to revisit your goals and/or actually do something about it. It doesn’t have to be a huge life change...take gradual steps to incorporate whatever you’re passionate about into your day to day. And adversely as Robert Tew once said “respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that no longer serves you, grows you or makes you happy.”
Make the most of your life RIGHT NOW. Life is too short and all too often “not now” turns into never and how sad is that? So on this Thanksgiving I am beyond grateful for new beginnings and more importantly the unwavering support system that makes me believe in myself, so much so, I continue to make these crazy moves.
And lastly Happy Turkey Day from my Turkey!