I Thought You Knew?

I’m trying to wrap my head around a few different things so forgive me if this seems a bit scattered. I’ll get to the point of this, but first here’s the necessary back story:

I had a corporate career for 12 years. I loved each position I held and what I got to do every day. I ADORED the people I had the opportunity to work with. What never felt like a good fit was the actual environment. I didn’t like the idea of competing with my peers for a position, didn’t like the idea of having or being a manager. Sadly, sometimes making good money is enough to make you deal with the things you don’t necessarily care for and for 12 years, I dealt with it.

Sometime just after the birth of my second tiny human, the idea of going back to my corporate job started giving me serious anxiety. What I know now that I wish I had known then was that my mind and body was telling me it was desperately ready for a change. I had chalked it up to not wanting to put my kids in daycare. When you know better, you do better (that’s also a post-corporate learning). The universe works in mysterious ways and a unique opportunity crossed my path a short time later. For the record, I’m a believer in the fact that you are only presented with a life-changing opportunity once (MAYBE twice) over the course of your time on this planet. It was unique in the sense that it’s something I had never imagined myself doing, but it was going to give me the best of both worlds and that was exactly what my heart had been longing for. In the event that this was the only one I’d ever see, I said yes and got to work.

This new path tested me in ways that I hadn’t experienced, but the crazy thing is that I loved it. I loved reaching, stretching and achieving. And the culture…wow. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. In my corporate career, I was used to competing with other people for promotions and raises. In this new world, I was locking arms with some of the most courageous and inspiring leaders and we were going together. Each person had the same opportunity to move forward. It came down to making a decision to go combined with personal drive, belief and courage. Imagine the strength and momentum that happens when people choose to work together instead of against each other. It creates a force that can do indescribable good for our world and the people in it. And, in case you were curious, I was able to quit my corporate job one short year after I said yes.

So this brings us back to the present. Because of this culture I am privileged to continue to cultivate and be a part of, I sometimes struggle with situations and people that aren’t a part of anything like it and this is mostly due to the fact that they don’t understand it and I can’t accurately put it into words. I’m not trying to paint everyone with the same brush or anything because I do have amazingly fabulous friends that are in vastly different industries. I’m referring to the ones that don’t believe that each person deserves success, pleasure and enjoyment in anything they choose to pursue. Perhaps those particular individuals don’t understand that they are capable of inspiring people to jump outside their comfort zones and do something they’ve spent years dreaming about. Instead it’s seen as some obscure form of competition and it turns into a passive aggressive pissing match because they feel like they or their idea was ripped off. Or maybe, just maybe, it had nothing to do with them at all. Perhaps it was just time. Timing may be everything, but the right timing is different for every one. In any case, it likely has nothing to do with you.

I guess that’s where my confusion kicks in. I can’t understand why happiness or fulfilment is so hard to come by for some. Each is a choice in perspective. It’s a choice period. There are a ton of people out there that live with that corporate mentality that, to this day, makes me shudder. There is little to no hesitation when it comes to using someone else to further themselves. Is this really our world now? Are we incapable of being happy for the success of others or supportive of them? Do you think somehow that seeing someone else happy or filled with passion will somehow take that away from you?

Show love and support for those around you. You may not like or agree with the choice they are making, but that’s okay because it’s not about you. And don’t go acting all surprised or hurt. This shouldn’t be news to you. We each need to have the space and courage to forge our own path. Maybe next time you need to think outside of yourself. Attempt to be open-minded when someone chooses to share their stories.

My declaration for today is this: I will continue to do the things that make me happy, that bring me joy. I will do them because they feel right to me. And it doesn’t matter what anyone else says or does because it’s not about them. I may appreciate the love and support, but I’ll be ok and will continue to move forward without it.