“I prefer the challenges of life to the guaranteed existence” -Alfange
Before starting work after college, I took a journey. I backpacked Asia, swam with bull sharks, skydived, zip-lined through a jungle, and lived with monks for a week at a monastery in Thailand.
I did all of this because I thought if I could do all of the things I aspired to do prior to work then I’d have no issue keeping my head down for the next 2–5 years in a grueling career that would eventually “Pay off.”
I was wrong.
Absorbing music, art, food, and culture from all of these experiences with so many unique people only enticed me to want more of it. It’s like a runner’s high, you don’t just run to reach the feeling and quit. That high from running freely becomes an addiction. You own your self.
Working for a job that is soul sucking, mindless, and draining is a paradox to the idea of manifesting a meaningful life. Humans weren’t created to conform to the ideology of living in misery to one day enjoy living.
I’m all for paying your dues and working hard, but deep work comes from a pull. A craft that one has such a deep connection and passion towards that it’s empowering. Not a push.
A push can work for a matter of time but it’s unsustainable as any logical mind would eventually stop or give up if there’s not an authentic pull to the actual craft.
The whole concept of hating a job, your life, for a paycheck or a glamorous title is the epitome of what is wrong with society. Self value that’s obtained externally through the need of recognition and peer acceptance is an endless trap that inevitably leads to the path of self misery.
Self value is only achieved through living inward, true to one’s self. We live in a world that values conformity over individualism and creativity.
I definitely aspire to be financially stable and give back to the world — But I strongly believe that can be done through a life full of passion and adventure, on my own terms.
I’m not exactly sure how but I’d much rather prefer the uncertainties of an exciting, fulfilling journey than the clarity of a mindless existence.
