It is almost my birthday.
I am going to be 39. Don’t worry, it isn’t that scary for me.
38 was scary. Last year, turning another year older was terrifying.
Last year, in April, I was overwhelmed. I was in a business I wasn’t loving anymore. I felt guilty for being me (or at least trying to be me.) My husband was unhappy in his work: desperately, devastatingly unhappy.
We would look at each other with sadness, and confusion. How did this happen? We should be happy people! We have the “stuff” we are supposed to have (jobs, house, car, kids)!
But we weren’t. We were definitely NOT happy.
It felt like we were so distracted by the things in our life, our commitments and our expectations, that we couldn’t really focus on the stuff we DID want in our lives. I think like many in our generation, after having done “the impossible” of purchasing a home, and balancing a family and businesses, we felt trapped.
Stuck.
Stuck in what we were supposed to do.
And then, we decided we didn’t want to feel that way anymore.
Well, it didn’t really happen exactly like that. There were a lot of tears and worrying and stress and anxiety. We were up, down, and then down lower, and even a little lower.
And then, finally, we got the courage to just leap.
How? How did I get the courage? (That IS everyone’s question!)
Well, I went and saw happy people. It was that simple.
I went away for the weekend miserable, and I stood in a room with hundreds of women who were happier than me. They were themselves. In all shapes, sizes and ideas.
Just themselves.
And, oh, did I ever covet the thought of being able to be me.
So, I went home, and I found the courage. Three days after that conference, through even more tears, my husband and I decided to leap together.
We put the house on the market. He quit his job (mine was to come later) and we dragged our three kids to an island we had only been to once before.
And it worked. We are building a life by our own design. Every piece of it is being created to make us happy, and fullfilled. We have new businesses, we have re-built our family. We are no longer distracted.
We are happy.
If you need a leap, join me at every WOMAN Whistler. It was the little push I needed to find the courage I always had.
And, as an extra special treat, use the code JULIE to get a bonus $25 off your ticket (before April 15th)
Hundreds of workshops, events and activities.
And me, I’ll be there…and if there is one thing that I love, it is helping others to leap!
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A mom who knew there had to be more than an overwhelming suburban life filled
with good jobs and soccer practices, Julie swept her family off onto a small island in
BC to start over! Craving a life of fulfillment she blogs about facing fears
and courageously going after your dreams!
She believes that if you do something, you should do it fully: eat butter, sweat hard and laugh till you pee.
Julie’s blog is filled with stories of how her family adapts and continues to strive for a fulfilled life… while enjoying a few perks along the way!
Visit her at www.julienowell.com
