I love people. This is my greatest asset and also my biggest weakness.
I believe the more you help others the higher the probability is that they will help you.
However in this hyper competitive, crowded, catch phrase, race for others to like us, world we live in I feel sometimes we lose sight of what truly completes us and what we think we have to gain others approval of us.
The reality is that we all love reality.
We only have to switch on the TV and be bombarded by reality home renovation, cooking, dating, survival and even watching people watching TV (google box) programs. Even when we know they are not reality we still gravitate to watching them.
We are also socially hardwired to look through the lens of others’ lives and modify our own behaviours, opinions, and expectations as a means of self-validation and acceptance by those important to us.
So we play it safe. We do things that we think others will approve of and as a result we die a slow silent death inside of ourselves until we one die or two face a significant event that causes us to make a change.
What I have also come to appreciate is playing this game of life is best played at the edges. I’m not talking about recklessness, I mean living life authentically and true to what’s important to you and who you aspire to become.
I can’t say I’m better either, because I too bought into the expectations of my parents, friends, community and the society. I borrowed as much as I could to by the most expensive house I could and pretended to be successful when all I was doing was struggling in my career and drowning in debt.
While money is important, I frequently see in my role, time and time again miserable people because they are burdened by lifestyles and debts in an effort to be accepted or seen as successful in the eyes of others. It tears me up all the time!!!
My wakeup call came to me in a dream. I sensed the presence of Jesus and he told me “I’ve set you free”. I woke up alive, bussing with excitement and lightness.
Every single day since then I have felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude, forgiveness, freedom and putting life into clearer and more meaningful perspective. I’m not here to preach. It’s just my story, however the experience has allowed me the space and perspective to live a life of more authenticity.
So in an already crowded market how can we still make a living and be true to who we are? The answer is simple. Be yourself.
People love hearing your story.
We all love stories because this is how we’ve learnt things from young. Our stories give insight to others about who we are, how we are trying to wrestle with and overcome our challenges.
Our stories reveal our authenticity and vulnerabilities, which most people naturally gravitate to want to hear and help us, because doing so you are also helping them.
I believe this is the greatest challenge we all face.
We all aspire to be better versions of ourselves, however thinking that if you impress others with how great you, your product, your life is, is the solution. It only leads to envy, isolation and depression.
I too struggle with this. I honesty get a buzz when I see people like and share my posts and blogs, however they’re not the reasons I write and post these thoughts.
I write because in my reality I’m trying to dig into something that I have my own challenges with.
It’s also my hope that sharing my story, my experiences and my learnings that they add value and help you too. This is what gives me the biggest buzz.
I also know doing so also brings people to consider me being their advisor and helping people solve their money problems is my business.
So there is currency in what I am doing, however writing about my personal experiences is also more than my currency is also my legacy.
When I’m retired, dead and gone my work will still be there for others and hopefully it will help other generations facing similar struggles too.
“A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose share they know they shall never sit” Ancient Greek proverb.
If you are stuck in a rut or need some clarity to help you move forward and make better choices and live your ideal life sooner I look forward to your reply.
This post was written by Me, as such they are my personal views and not financial or general advice.
You should always seek independent financial advice when it comes to choices about your personal finances. This is one area of your life where it’s worth paying for it to be done right.
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