Stepping into the Unknown

This is exactly what happened when I decided to quit my job, move to Colorado, and start this blog. I chose, once again, to go against all “logical” choices. Choosing to follow my fear… well not exactly. Perhaps this feeling can be closely linked to the anticipation you feel right before an amazing trip somewhere you’ve always dreamed of going. Or perhaps the “butterflies in your stomach” that you get right before going on stage to perform or give a presentation at work. Mix these sensations together with the feeling of getting lost in the middle of the forest.

This is what stepping into the unknown feels like to me. And honestly, I’ve been craving it.

I think there comes a time in all of our young adult lives when we cross over from being a child, a student, an intern…. to someone who has the freedom of infinite choice. And infinite choices are scary. Infinite choices mean incomprehensible possibilities for the future. But they also mean infinite opportunities to fail. To be wrong, to make mistakes. And for many of us, that’s too much of a risk to take. 

So we wait. and wait. Until we realize that life doesn’t happen to us anymore. No one schedules field trips, concerts, or dances. 

Life becomes work, for the most part. And worst of all- Work becomes life.

So we choose to become complacent with our lives, reminding ourselves that we’ve grown up. That this is what it’s like to be an adult. To be miserable.

 Or we choose to step into the unknown.

Take That First Step

I believe that the first step we take to enter into our own unknown isn’t physical. It’s psychological. Its letting our walls down and shedding our identities. Our boxes. 

Exposing our vulnerability to ourselves and the world in order to become better versions of ourselves.

Moving to Colorado without a job in sight, nor friends or family was tough. Is still tough.

But it’s also extremely rewarding, confidence boosting, morale building, and exciting. 

Growth happens when we go against the grain. When we step outside the boxes we’ve built for ourselves, and experience discomfort we also experience new sensations, challenges, and moments of joy.

Just like everything else in life, it’s a ying-yang process. There are ups and downs. Dark times and bright times.

Working at my last job was a dark time for me because I was spending 60% of my day doing something I didn’t enjoy. This included driving through traffic there and back, spending days mindlessly staring at my screen with nothing to do, and the aftermath recovery of spending my evenings in front of the tv frying my brain.

Getting into a minor car accident on the way home one day was what finally woke me up. Told me to PAY ATTENTION!

BE HERE! SLOW DOWN! WAKE UP!

So I did. 

Slowly as I continue down this path towards an unknown and undefined future, I have more time to look around in the present. To experience more of it. Meet new people, see new breathtaking places, try new amazing hiking spots. While not every single experience has been positive, (like the time I flew off my mountain bike) they have contributed to my personal growth and a better sense of who I really am.

When you get to this point, if you’re not already here, choose to see life in a new way. Choose to step off the well-trodded path.

In a way stepping into the unknown is also like intentionally stepping deeper into a richer-version of the present. 

 You can always go back, although I highly doubt you will.