Many, many years ago I had a good friend who wanted to be a veterinarian. I convinced her to join me at college. She flunked out of school in her first semester and never went back.
As she made that choice, I remember her telling me that it didn’t matter what she did, the years would go by and life would go on.
I was very different from her. I was driven. I was getting my degree and wanted an amazing business that would make me rich. I worked really hard. I played even harder.
Neither one of us, really, had any focus. We were both 20-somethings with no concept of how any of this would play out.
For some reason her “years-will-go-by-life-will-go-on” comment stuck with me.
I was so disappointed that I couldn’t convince this brilliant friend not to give up. I saw her brilliance, but she could not. To have seen her shine – as I see it in SO many people – is a blessing.
Literally days after that conversation and probably why I remember it so sharply, I was driving across an intersection in the pouring Florida rain. As I looked to my left, I saw a pick-up truck barreling right at me as I pressed hard on the gas pedal to get across. That’s all I remember.
Apparently, the driver’s side door and I were hit head-on and I went straight out the passenger window of my car. We were both totaled.
After weeks in the hospital and months of rehab, I felt like my life’s trajectory needed a bit more attention – pun intended ;-). I didn’t believe in God, but I do believe in higher universal and spiritual powers.
When I woke up three days later, my body covered in glass, I knew I had received a clear message that stopped me from being so cavalier about my life. Though I did want my car stereo back!
I was lucky. I had family that came to help. I had a boss that kept my job waiting for me. He let me arrive late with my walker and he rearranged the office so I could continue to work while attending my last year of college.
I guess the point I’m trying to make is that I spent most of my life thinking that since I survived,
I better find my reason for being here.
I’ve constantly felt a pull that the next “something awesome” is just around the corner.
The piece I keep with me is to live MY life. I never waited for things to “turn around.” I moved on when it was time to move on. I took risks, and I still do. I’m not waiting for retirement to take adventures and hope my body is ready willing and able. And I love unabashedly.
We are created to create ourselves.
We are created to find our brilliance.
That’s our job. That’s our life’s work.
Creating RightLife RuleBook is a part my life’s work.
When you think about your own life’s work, what comes to mind. When I think about what I did naturally as a child, the thing I didn’t let anything or anyone stop me from being interested in: it was teaching.
- It was exposing others to something they may or may not be drawn to.
- It was creating a library in the basement, complete with the Dewey Decimal system!
- It was teaching an imaginary classroom about the world, all from World Book Encyclopedia and National Geographic.
- It was reading Nancy Drew to the same class, and telling them women can do anything!
- It was taking my class through the woods and building dams in the stream, and picking leaves and flowers to identify.
- It was pretending I knew how to use a slide-rule (most of you won’t even know what that is!)
But, it wasn’t for me or about me. It was always about my “class.” Do you have a sense that something is ready and waiting for you?
Do you want to join my class? It’s for you. My grown-up class is all about creating small groups to work with me and allow me to teach them what I know. All of it!
Honestly, it is one of the great joys of my life to be able to work directly with clients and watch their courage and growth as they create days – that lead into a life – that is sweet and wonderful!
Originally published at lgcoaching.com