Wednesday, December 25, 2024
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Fran Thring

God when it hurts

Fran Thring
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God when it hurts

How can there be a good God when there is so much evil and suffering in the world?

When I was at High School I was good friends with a girl, her named was Pumla. We played hockey together in the B team, we weren’t very good, and we would sit next to each other in English and talk about everything which wasn’t what the teacher was discussing. Pumla was smart and hard-working. She was also raised by a single Mom and didn’t have a lot of support from family. In the year in which we turned 17 Pumla’s Mom was murdered in her home, leaving Pumla without anyone.

This experience, as you can imagine was heartbreaking. A local family took her in and Pumla stayed with me in the Boarding School. There was nothing any of us could say to try to fix the situation and not a lot we could do, except be good friends.

When I went to University Pumla and I went to the same College, and stayed in the same Residence. We have remained good friends through the years and have been a part of each other’s lives. The one thing which both of us have struggled through is, why, when we know God is good and powerful did He let this happen?

God didn’t create evil

He created the possibility for us to choose evil. When God made the world He created a place with a great amount of possibility for good and also terrible evil. And then He gave us the option to select what we want. The evil in the world isn’t God’s doing. He does not make people die, nor does He create bad situations for them.

We need a Savior

As humans, we all need a Saviour. We need a relationship with God. The glory of God can not be understood without seeing what the world looks like without God’s grace and goodness. You can not understand light without seeing or experiencing darkness. The absence of God and His ways in the world show us that we need a Saviour.

God is love and love means choice

There cannot be love without choice. Holding a gun to someone’s head and asking “Do you love me?” doesn’t prove anything. If you chose to love and follow someone when you don’t have to, this is evidence of love. The world that God created allows the possibility of the greatest love and greatest existence. However, in that same possibility, the opposite of love is also possible, resulting in evil and hatred.

I can not tell someone who has gone through immense amounts of pain and hardship that it is worth nothing, or that some theological argument regarding good and evil is going to take away what they experienced. Pain and hurt can never be rationalised away, and we can’t always understand everything that we go through as humans. I will say this, I’ve found in my life, that the thing that has helped the most when I have had difficulties to overcome has been the strength I have found in my faith and the support shown to me by my friends and church community.

God loves us, each and every one of us. No matter what has happened to us or what unfortunate circumstances we find ourselves in, we cannot use this to measure God’s love. If you are going through something difficult or have questions regarding the things that have happened in your life, don’t sit there alone. Reach out to God in prayer and meet with people who have real relationships with God. I truly believe he wants to help you with everything you are going through.

I’m always SO tired

Fran Thring
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I’m always SO tired

I snapped at my friend last night. Ew, not good. I don’t even know what we were talking about and why I felt SO personal and moody about it. It was about 12am, we were curled up on the couch like two little rabbits. We had worked out that day (hard) and also done some shopping, binge watched a few episodes of Gilmore Girls on TV and I thought I wasn’t tired. Yeah, right. She knows me well enough to recognise the signs, “you need to go to sleep.”

I’m horrible without enough sleep. I’m an adult, but really when it comes to sleep I’m a grown child. I become sensitive, negative and irritable when I don’t get enough sleep.

What does sleep deprivation do to you?

There was a study done on physicians completing a task. The physicians did a task without any sleep deprivation, then they sleep deprived them for just 24 hours, and had them come back and do the same exact task. They made 20% more mistakes, doing the same exact thing and it took them 14% longer to complete the same task.

UC Berkley conducted brain scans and they found that in individuals who were sleep deprived, again, just 24 hours sleep deprivation, there was a radical decrease in activity in the prefrontal cortex. This is the part of your brain that makes you human. This is the part of your brain that’s about social control, distinguishing between right and wrong, decision-making. Now we know why I snapped, right?!

Feeling annoyed?

We are 60% more reactive to negative stimuli when we’re sleep deprived. It is harder for the brain to calm down. It’s harder for us to get on that positive track, for us to execute on the things that we choose to do. For us to go and accomplish our goals, we’ve got to kind of muster up all of this energy.

What can you do to sleep better?

Cut off screen time

Staring at a bright screen just before you are going to bed is not a good idea (guilty!). It tricks your brain into staying more alert than it needs to be. Think about it, when you are on an aeroplane they dim the lights and all of a sudden you feel like sleeping. Think about it, when you wake up and it’s dark outside, you are far less likely to feel like getting up.

Create a routine

Our bodies love routine. They are made for routine. Try to get to bed at the same time and wake up at the same time everyday.

Turn your bedroom into a restful space

I work in my bedroom – I shouldn’t. I also bring my phone to bed with me, I shouldn’t. If you program your mind to think, “oh restful space here”, it will be easier to slot into sleep mode when you lay your head on the pillows.

Coffee

Coffee stays in your blood stream for 6-8 hours after you have had it. So those after dinner cups are not the best way to get some quality rest into your system. Even if you feel like you can pass out easily, don’t be fooled. Your nervous system is still alert and your quality of sleep is affected.

Listen people, there’s a difference between doing work and actually being effective. There’s a difference between doing your day with a cheery attitude and an aggressive, frustrated attitude.

That difference just may be sleep. Don’t try to tie yourself down to as little as possible, look after your body and make sure you get enough sleep. You can’t sleep when you’re dead, but you can sleep now and be a happy functional human. Yes.

Why you need friends across the generations

Fran Thring
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Why you need friends across the generations

The world is up in arms every time a female is misrepresented. Every time you scroll through Twitter or Facebook you see article upon article upon article making a stance about the lack of diversity in culture – ethnic, gender, sexual orientation. Well, I here to say: “what about age?” No, but really, what about age? How many friends do you have who are a lot older than you or a lot younger than you? It’s a real thing guys. People are lazy when it comes to crossing the generation gap.

Here are a few reasons why we should value multi-generational friendships in our lives.

They offer wisdom

No amount of research can ever beat real life experience or talking to someone who has been through it all. Experiencing life’s pain and challenges causes us to change and grow up. Many times we can’t know the answer until we have walked through the journey. When you talk to someone far old than you, you can gain a perspective which you would never have had on your own.

We prevent depression and loneliness

Many older people lose a lot of their friends and close family. Being young, filled with dreams and excited about life can remind someone older that their life isn’t over until it is over. Taking the time to listen to someone’s stories makes them feel validated and important. Being around someone old can force you to slow down and pay attention to the little things.

We provide mentorship

If you don’t have any young people in your life, who are you sharing your skills with? Who are you encouraging and teaching about life. Young people need support and examples from people who have gone before them. Many young people make poor decisions because they don’t have good examples in their lives.

Many perspectives make the end result better

Whether you are old or young or in-between, hearing the perspectives from both sides makes for more sound decisions. A healthy dialogue helps us to learn from past mistakes, from those who are older and more experienced as well as learning from young and up coming people with ideas and passion.

Don’t let your life be one-dimensional. Learn and grow together side by side. Actively pursue relationships with people who are older and younger than you so that your life is rich and purposeful. The Bible teaches us to love one another, to honour your father and mother and to not look down on people because they are younger than you.

We very easily get caught up in ourselves but today I want to remind you that your life is not about you. Your life is about the impact that you leave on those around you. Leave an imprint on lives. Take the time to care for people, old and young. Let your life be governed by this message: “love one another as you love yourself.”

Money mistakes you want to avoid in your 30s

Fran Thring
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Money mistakes you want to avoid in your 30s

I was excited, not sad, when I turned 30. It was time for a new era. A slightly more mature, less erratic era where I could invest a little more into the things that matter to me and begin to build something significant. For the first time in my life, when I reached 30, I had enough to save and put away money.

It soon became apparent to me that I was now going to need a new attitude to the whole making money thing and what I did with it. I have numerous friends who are buying homes and having babies and doing life well. I have other friends who are complaining about schooling costs and never seem to have any cash. I know which group I wanted to be in.

It was time to get money savvy and make my 30’s count. Here are some common errors people make in their 30’s when it comes to life and finances.

Not saving enough for retirement

I know, I know you are not at retirement age yet, or even nearly. The thing is when you do get there you want to be able to relax. Chill. Go for the odd holiday. Buy yourself something. That won’t happen unless you are organised and think ahead.

You should be putting away at least 10 percent of your earnings into savings. That’s right! 10 percent. Even if you can’t put away that amount then put away as much as you can.

Being too conservative in your investment strategy

Now is the time to get your savings in to an aggressive portfolio with 80-90 percent stocks. It’s the best bet for long-term goals.

It may not feel like your investments are ever going to grow or that you have so little to put away, however every little bit counts and if you add up the compound interest over the years then you will never regret getting started and being a little bit risky with where you invest.

Making debt a way of life

I feel like I need to write this in red letters: debt is not normal. It is not normal. Just because you have become used to having a credit card or amounts going off your account doesn’t mean it’s okay or healthy. Save up and buy. Plan ahead.

Do whatever you can to get out of debt and remain out of debt. Debt is always going to weigh you down and always costs you your emotional health.

Putting kids above financial security

We all love our children to death, and it’s a natural God-given desire to look after them and give them the best. All the same, you don’t have to give your child every toy they want. Children want an item for a day and then don’t want it the next day. They also don’t understand long-term goals or what is really good for them.

What a child really needs is financially secure parents.

Letting your professional life stagnate

Professional growth often slows down from ages 30-40. Don’t let your career stagnate and don’t lose focus. Stay on top of trends. Actively invest in your professional development. Go on courses, read material and listen to talks.

You should never stop learning in life, so don’t drift, drive.

Paying for a home you can’t afford

Owning a home is a dream most people have in life, but don’t buy a home before you are financially ready. And, if you do, make sure it is within your means. A mortgage which eats up all your savings is not a good thing.

Rent until you can actually buy a home, you are only going to create a lot of additional stress in your life if you rush into this too fast.

Spending too much on cars

Don’t pretend that people don’t equate the car you drive with the success you have – they do but it’s not a real thing. Your need for a car is something safe which gets you from a to b. Nothing more.

Don’t buy a car with fancy everything, air conditioning, sound systems, DVD players and all the rest when you know you can’t afford it.

Equating success with a life of luxury

The more money you make, the more you want to spend. Don’t live a lifestyle which keeps you broke. Remain intentional about where your money goes and you’ll build real wealth which lasts.

Invest in your future. Be wise and rock and roll your way through your 30’s in financial success.

Why I trust the bible

Fran Thring
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Why I trust the bible

I grew up on stories from the Bible. My Dad would read to me about Noah and the ark and all the animals that he took with him. I would read about Moses as a little baby in a basket on the river and the story of the Israelites who ran away from Pharaoh and the Egyptians. I never really questioned the Bible or it’s autheticity until I was much older.

As I grew up and became a young adult I started to wonder about the Bible, I realised that there were other holy books out there and the thought crossed my mind that perhaps the Bible wasn’t any different from any other holy book. I wondered, what makes the Bible special and can we trust it?

The Bible is trustworthy and there are various reason that I have since discovered which help us to understand why people put their trust in what is said in the book.

The Bible is historically accurate

The Bible was written a long, long time ago – it is very difficult to always be aware of what went on in those times as there were no video cameras, and things were recorded on scrolls. The field of archaeology has shown us some of the fact and figures about the times when the Bible was written. These facts, figures and geographical places recorded in the Bible have all been verified by additional sources.

This means that the Bible was accurate regarding many of the things it was explaining. This makes it far less likely for the rest of the things recorded in the Bible to be untrue.

The Bible has been preserved

As I mentioned above the Bible is very old and many old books have one or two copies which makes us suspicious of whether they actually are the same as the original. The Bible is different – over 5800 copies of the Greek manuscripts have been preserved. This doesn’t tell us that the original is true, of course.

Still, it does help to contribute to the argument that the book has remained unchanged throughout the years and helps us to benchmark the Bible on our shelf with many, many very old copies.

The New Testament manuscripts were written by eye witnesses

The stories in the Bible are eye-witness accounts. This means the people who wrote the stories actually saw the things that happened. There would have been very little motivation for the people of the time to change or lie about the events.

The consequences of these lies would have been death and many of the people who told the stories of Christ were willing to die because they did not want to deny what they claimed was the truth.

The Bible cared about women when nobody else did

The Bible very clearly told us that two women were the first to see Jesus rise from the dead. Now we don’t know too much about the cultures of the time but we do know that a women’s voice and opinion was regarded as far less important than a mans.

Had the Bible been created for fun, or as a trick, or in order to gain appeal then the last thing the writers would have done would be to admit that a women saw Jesus. This small truth helps point us to evidence that the Bible is true.

The resurrection was predicted before it happened

Jesus knew he was going to die. Other texts which were written years and years before his time stated that he would die and rise again. It would have been impossible to recreate this. All Jesus’s followers died confessing that Jesus died and rose again. Nobody found the answer as to where he went from the tomb.

Jesus himself told his disciples that he died and rose again. He met them, he walked with them and talked with them and there were eye-witness accounts of this. If it was all a big manufactured lie what would the motivation have been for this?

We don’t know all the answers to things on earth, and we never will. But we do have access to a book which 1000’s of people died to preserve. We do have access to a book which tells us that a God in Heaven loves you and cares about what is happening in your everyday. That’s something special so maybe try reading the Bible for yourself today and see if there is something in it which speaks to you.

5 new exercise rules

Fran Thring
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5 new exercise rules

I grew up in a health fanatic family. My Dad has a whole room dedicated to machines and if he doesn’t eat his 5 vegetables a day then he tells me his body is crying out for them. He even has salad for breakfast. It’s a bit of an obsession. As a result of this I grew up with a fair amount of knowledge regarding health and fitness.

What I’ve learnt since then is that even when you think you know about something, there is a lot more to learn. I’ve also learnt that the science and learnings regarding health and fitness are changing all the time. What was the latest and greatest exercise fad last week is now no longer relevant.

Here are 5 new exercise rules which may help you crush it in the gym this week and remain up to date with what is happening in the exercise arena.

Exercise Partners

We used to always say exercise partners, accountability partners and someone to drag you to the gym when you feel like spending at least 17 more hours sleeping is the BEST solution. This is true, don’t get me wrong. But it’s also only half of the truth. The truth is also that having your bestie at gym can mean that you end up discussing the cute new guy at work instead of putting in those extra reps at the rowing machine. Or she convinces you to grab a smoothie afterwards when you know you really don’t need the extra calories.

An exercise partner is good if that exercise partner will enhance your results, push you harder and make you better. Take care when you choose your exercise partner. Someone driven, better than you and consistent is the best way to go.

2. Athletic shoes

The rule used to be the more you cushion your little toes the better. Now, the powers that be have declared the lighter the shoe, the better the shoe. Essentially different sports also require a different kind of shoe.

This is not an excuse to go grab the newest Nike shoes which cost a fortune. This is an encouragement to invest wisely into your athletic gear and listen to your body. If you are getting injured then make sure you are careful with what you do and what you wear.

3. How to get a 6 pack

The old school way to get a 6 pack was to do a crazy amount of sit ups at the end of your work out. Now we know better, sit ups aren’t bad. But, if you are doing your work out correctly, then you should be working your abs all the way through the exercise routine.

Pay attention to your abs as you work out. Don’t be sloppy with your routine and your form (the way you hold your body). Make sure that the core is always engaged and you will find that you need a whole lot less sit ups to get the same results.

4. How to do a push up

Push ups are the worst. But also the best. They work your arms and your whole body. The thing is females are often wimps when it comes to push ups. I mean really… science now shows that if you do push ups on your knees you put extra pressure on all the wrong muscles.

Don’t do that. Instead do your push ups from the correct place. Do a half or even a quarter push up if you can’t go the whole way. Then, when you feel stronger you can go the whole way down and into the push up.

5. Starving yourself and then working out

This mentality is very last year. I mean seriously, have you tried to complete a workout when you feel like you are going to faint from hunger. It’s not a good idea. The best idea is to have a small healthy snack before you work out and make sure that you have taken in enough water.

If you eat correctly before a work out you will have enough energy to push yourself and make sure it’s tough. If you don’t then it could end horribly. We don’t want that.

So there you have it, all your updates on the new trends. Now head to the gym and crush it.

When saying Yes steals your destiny

Fran Thring
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When saying Yes steals your destiny

FOMO costs us a lot. Yes, we joke about it – ahhhhh you’ve got FOMO. Or you miss the weekend party and you feel sad #FOMO, but FOMO is a real thing and a difficulty which we as humans have been struggling with for a very long time. There’s always something better. There’s always hidden potential which calls us away from where we are to somewhere else.

I remember how I used to live my life. I would start something – a new job or a new business or a new volunteer position at church and everything seemed GLORIOUS. That is, until something else popped up on the scene – hello, look me! I’m awesome. I’m amazing. I’m going to be loads of fun. And because well, who wouldn’t be interested in all the awesome amazing fun potential of this new thing – I said the ultimate words… ‘yes’

And then I was in, and now I was doing my old things and my new thing and it was a little bit tough but you know what, I figured it out. Until all of a sudden someone approached me, “Hey Fran, I’m doing this awesome documentary. It’s going to be so great. Do you want to be a part of it?” And, you know what? It sounded so good. So, so good, I found I really wanted to say yes and I did.

Now I was doing all these things and the new documentary which appeared so good was badly run and demanding a crazy amount of my time so all the other things in my life suffered. I started performing badly at the first thing and the second thing. My team members dropped off, I messed up with a key client, and my health started to decline. I was stressed. I felt overwhelmed. I felt like everyone wanted a piece of me and was demanding my time and energy. But in their defence, I had promised it to them.

I let FOMO drive my ‘yes’ rather than what was truly the best for my life at that stage. As a result my integrity and my performance suffered. My relationships suffered. And I even suffered.

It’s important to remember that you don’t have to take every opportunity that comes your way. You don’t need to be friends with every person who walks into your life and you don’t have to be good at everything.

“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.” – Steve Jobs

That’s true for most of life. People have painted success as saying yes to 1000 things and if we don’t, we worry we’ll fail. We don’t say no to new clients because we fear missing out on income opportunities.

We don’t say no to more training because we are afraid of missing out on learning a new skill.

We don’t say no to lunch invites because we fear missing out on key networking events.

We have push notifications.

We have Facebook open on our computer screens.

We don’t close the office door.

We’re so busy saying yes to the vague possibility that something more valuable than what we have now is out there that we never get around to actually working on it.

Our schedules tell the sad stories

No boundaries. No focus. No clarity. Deep down, we know. Our time on earth is what it is. We can’t change that, but we can change how we use that time and what our energy goes towards. So when  we pencil in another maybe, we throw away the time spent on our current project.

“An opportunity with a ‘yes’ attached is an obligation. Too many obligations is an obstacle.” Michel Hyatt.

Don’t do your life from a place of fear or lack. Rather, do it from a place of abundance. There is always another deal. And another lunch. Don’t hand over your destiny because you said too many yeses and not enough nos.

Are we too busy watching other people’s lives to live out our own?

Fran Thring
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Are we too busy watching other people’s lives to live out our own?

Maybe it’s just me, but when I sit down to do something I really want to do, like, you know, build that dream writing career which is beckoning me from the rooftops, all of a sudden the last thing I feel like doing is writing. Moments earlier, I was very awake. Seconds before I was talking with my house mate, full of energy. Now, I’m not so sure. I stare into the mirror in my room. I pace around, pick up some forgotten clothes and make sure the papers are square on my desk.

Then I do what I know I shouldn’t. I pick up my phone and I throw away the next 30 minutes I have, bam just like that.  Why is it that every time I pick up my phone some numbing brain deadening potion is injected into my brain. I forget about my task for the night. I forget about the dreams, the hopes, the grit. All I can think about is ‘ohhhhh, I wonder what this Instagram influencer is up to’. I watch her story. Then, I watch her friend’s because she looks cute too.

Next it autoscrolls to the next story and I watch that too. Then I think OMG I need a top like hers, and I’m online shopping. There’s so much. The top needs shoes. The shoes need socks. My writing needs to start but that the last thing on my mind. A full shopping cart later, I pause. Oh, yes… what was I going to do? I check the time: WHAT?! An hour is gone. I put down my phone.

This happens all too often.

Are we too busy watching other people’s lives to live out our own?

There is nothing wrong with some healthy Insta-stalking or Facebook for that matter, but don’t do it when you have set aside time to do something meaningful. Do it when you’re waiting for the train. Do it when 17 people are ahead of you at the grocery store. Don’t do it when you know you have something important to get done. We are throwing away our own lives because we are too busy and easily distracted by everyone else’s.

There isn’t enough time in the day.

Really?

We run around watching other people live their lives and our priorities get shoved into the back corner, behind the stove. They come out occasionally and then we dare to complain about things not moving forward.

Imagine, just imagine what you could get done if you focused on you. You and what you need to do. A while back there was a huge study which claimed that it takes 10 000 hours to make a master of a skill set. That’s a crazy amount of time, I mean really? Yes really, and I think the guy was onto something. But how? How? I kindly ask, can we fit in the large amount of time required to do our lives well if we are spending hours each day watch other people, clicking here, clicking, there, liking this post, opening our Facebook every time a red dot appears.

It’s time to make some decisions and get disciplined. You heard me, disciplined. Check your phone only at certain times. Make dedicated ‘dream time’ times, and do something productive in them. DO IT.

Distraction is the biggest destiny dream stealer loose in our world today. There is everything to grab in a hand’s reach and not enough of us stop and ask what we are grabbing, if we really need it and why we grabbed it in the first place. Don’t let someone else grab your destiny. Do not let lack of focus steal your story.

Don’t you dare complain at the end of your life for the life you missed living – you’ve be warned. It’s your story. Your responsibility and your destiny. Go live it. God wants you to live it to the full. Go grab it. Hold on tightly until your knuckles are white and your nails tear. Look everyone in the face and refuse to let go.

What is the meaning of life?

Fran Thring
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What is the meaning of life?

It’s the ultimate question. Right? What is the meaning of life? Philosophers have been at it for years. They’ve written books and papers, about the books and papers which they wrote. They have sat in discussions between the greatest philosophical minds and discovered… Many theories. The fact remains, regardless of whatever theory you plug-in, humans need meaning attached to our lives. We need the WHY.

Tell someone to clean the toilet and they will say NO. Tell someone to clean the toilet because of x hygiene reason, the impact it has on guests when they come to your home, how you feel as a co-habitor when you sit on someone else’s dirty toilet and all of a sudden the outcome is different. Better. Why? Because we need a why.

So how do we find meaning in life? What makes us wake up every day and go for it? What makes us come to the end of our days with a sense of satisfaction?

Relationships with others

We are wired to thrive with relationships. Our overall well-being is deeply connected to our ability to make and keep good relationships. We need friends, we need family and we need partners. If we don’t have people to do life with we are miserable. And the more we give into these relationships and do life TOGETHER, the more we feel like our life has meaning. And purpose. If I died, someone is better because I lived.

Build quality relationships people. Give into the people in your life. Call them on their birthdays, visit them when they are sick. Find out how their day or week went. Make their lives better with your life and you will have a greater sense of meaning attached to your own.

Have faith

At some stage in your life, you are going to have to ask yourself the question: what is going to happen when I die? Having a belief in something more and in a “next life” gives this life direction, meaning and purpose.

It turns your action from momentary gains into something which can hold eternal value – that’s a pretty big deal. Faith keeps you motivated, it gives you direction. It helps establish your moral compass and becomes the foundation stone to your decisions. Think about it, if you haven’t. Think about what certain religions stand for. Talk to people about their experiences. Don’t spend half your life focused on YOU, and without any sense of anything else.

Solving problems

Solve problems – there are lots. The neighbourhood is messy – grab a group together and go out to do something about it. Your Mother in Law’s garden needs mowing – mow the garden. Your boss needs help with a presentation. Help out. Don’t be picky. We don’t have to focus on world peace here guys. Small problems and small resolutions matter. They make someone’s life better. Make the planet better. They are important and they give you and your life a sense of purpose. It’s beautiful, true and will make you MUCH happier than if you sit around expecting everyone else to do all the solving. Go solve a problem. Come on. Any problem.

As humans, we need a reason to get through the valleys. We need a reason to wake up in the morning when it’s raining outside, you didn’t get much sleep and the deadline for the article (this one) was yesterday. You need an “it’s hard, but it’s worth something”. Find your why. Search for it, pursue it, and keep it.

Follow your curiosity

Fran Thring
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Follow your curiosity

“Why not try follow curiosity with its humble round about magic. At the very least your curiosity may surprise you. At the very least it may have led you safely home.” – Elizabeth Gilbert

I’m convinced my alter ego is Curious George. If you don’t know who he is, here’s a link http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0381971/. George is a monkey who is very enthusiastic and very inquisitive. As a result of this he often finds himself in the strangest set of predicaments, requiring a minor adventure to bail him out.

I would not be lying if I told you I have tried at least 10 different career paths. 10 is the kind number, and the reality may be more – but let’s try not to think to hard on that. You see, I’m like George. My curiosity always gets the better of me. I’m just so interested I can’t not try something.

After I left school I taught English to second language speakers and travelled the world. I ran summer camps – it was a lot of fun but at the end I figured out I didn’t enjoy big groups of rowdy children and I was better suited to smaller classes or adult pupils.

I then worked as a Course Assistant in an office in London. It was a completely new experience for me, I hated it and I was bored witless. I didn’t even finish the contract.

I went on to study at Bible College two years later and completed a year in Leadership Studies. I learned a lot and I really enjoyed the academic side of the experience. Who knew we had a little intellectual on our hands?

2 years ago I started my own blog (check out my bio). I didn’t know where it would end, I simply took the advice in the quote above and followed my curiosity. I have always been compelled to write. I’ve loved the written word and deep thought with a passion which outweighed the many other things which have cropped up in my world. It was a small step, a curious step and it turns out an important step.

My blog has grown in leaps and bounds. I’ve published my first small Ebook and I’m on the way to creating a writing course which will link to it. I have people from all over the world following me and I’ve found something that I absolutely love doing.

As a result of my success here the company which I work with, a digital agency has asked me to lead a content division for them. Following my curiosity and listening to the small spark inside me which said “try this” has paid off and I don’t regret it a moment.

I love hearing the stories of people who have found a way to make a living out of doing something they love.

One of my friends has started her own yoga movements to raise funds for disabled kids. She killing it. She has people asking her to post about and wear their clothes. She holds events where you can buy a ticket and the proceeds will go to a cause. She’s doing well, she loves it and I can’t imagine her doing anything else.

One of my other friends is a passionate Chef. In his free time he is always cooking for someone, or anyone really. His meals have become infamous and he is opening his first “Pop-up Store”.

Is there something you are dreaming of pursuing? Many times our lives are so full of responsibility, obligation and what you THINK you want – you can’t hear the little spark of true interest which is peaking it’s head out saying, listen.

My dream for you would be this:

Trust the small voice inside you

Go for what interests you

Think about your situation – are you choosing success over happiness and is it REALLY worth it?

There are many diverse ways to earn an income, don’t get stuck in a rut and ignore the potential. Push open the doors, explore and you never know where you may find yourself in the end.

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