Time to Jump?
How much is joy worth? Is it worth a risk...taking a leap of faith? I think it is.
For today's picture, I was looking for one of the cliff jumps we did in the Dominic Republic but couldn't find the picture my husband took of me jumping. It was a bit high and scary but also looked like a lot of fun....so I jumped without too much fear. I wish though that I had held my body pencil straight vs. a bit of a lean because I ended up with a flop on the back of my thighs. Not the best feeling but the experience itself was great. Knowing that I had done this made me not think it would be crazy to do a triathlon that starts with jumping off a ferry into the ocean. I was supposed to try that feat in June...but postponed for now. My mom is not excited about me trying this one!
We take physical leaps of faith as well as emotional and professional ones. I think it gets easier the more you do them because you know that your fear was just a protector from doing stupid things but that your instincts are good and jumping is fun. Though...I'm still not ready to sky dive or bungee from a bridge. I started thinking about some of the non-physical leaps of faith I have taken, and I usually think about my 2 career leaps...leaving a company after almost 19 years because I didn't think it was my end game, but without knowing what that would look like, and a little over a year ago, leaving a great role because I didn't want regrets of not trying to go out on my own. I didn't want to wait because. who knows what will happen. If you've read some of my past blogs, you know that I'm happy I made these leaps, but everything doesn't work out as you had planned. The roller coaster of life will intervene, and honestly, though some parts of a roller coaster ride terrify me, I don't think I would really enjoy if it was just the flat, easy ride all the time...I like a bit of excitement and thrill and fear of the unknown.
I started thinking back to my earliest memories of taking leaps of faith, though I didn't really recognize them at the time.. Picking the college to go to when you have choices...I'm going to leap and try this one. Leaving my banking industry job the first time to do retail but then finding an opportunity to go back and try my hand in recruiting.Leaving a few more jobs to try to gain new experiences. After getting to Andersen Consulting/Accenture...changing roles every few years or frankly anytime someone said..."what do you think about doing this..." And then the big ones that I already mentioned.
Making career leaps are scary but honestly fun if you look at them in the right way. No, you won't know exactly how it will work out, but whatever happens, it will be a learning experience. If you don't leap, you stay in status quo which is always good for a period of time (and that differs for each of us and each situation), but if it's not bringing you joy in your life, maybe it's not the right thing. If you're bored at work, if you know you have have a great idea that the world should experience, if you know there's something else out there for you...stop waiting. Find a path forward to make it happen. Yes...be smart about your finances but also trust in the power of good ideas and your instincts.
I choose to not live with regrets. I would rather make a choice and decide it's the wrong one (or end up with a massive fail) than wonder what would have happened. And that reminds me of the other leap I took...I had an opportunity to move from northern Virginia to Delaware in 2002, and the initial decision was not to take it. But...I couldn't deal with the chance that I was missing out on an opportunity that I was supposed to take...so I changed directions and said yes, and we've been in Delaware now for over 18 years. Who knows what would have happened if I hadn't taken the role, but I do know that all of the experiences I've had would have been different...maybe I never would have become a runner or traveled to the places in the world that my job took me on or decided to start my own company. I don't know, and I will never know, and that's ok. I know that leaps are what keep life vibrant and keep me growing personally, professionally, and physically.
What leaps have you taken on your life journey? Are there leaps you're considering that maybe need some action? Is the end of 2020 the time to take the leap that you've been dreaming about?
I'll end with the quote I heard on my Peloton ride this morning. Jess King said (after talking about Glennon Doyle's Untamed book), "Own your wanting," What do you want and what leap are you willing to take to have it?