But what about joy…
We’ve reduced this magical experience of living down to work and achieving.
And that’s the problem.
From the moment we were kids, we were encouraged to do well in school so we could get a good job. And if we were good at our job, we’d make it to the corner office, the ultimate validation.
So we strived, using all of our resources–time, mental, and emotional energy–to prove we had what it took to achieve success.
Somewhere in there, we got older and had to find ways to squeeze in time for love, a partner, and a family with children. And because we wanted to give our kids every advantage, we became strivers at home too. Looking for the best schools, filling schedules with activities, we began padding the resume early, so our children would have a head start on the striver’s journey.
Before we knew it, we’d become a family of strivers, constantly climbing the never-ending ladder, spending all of our time and energy centering work and missing out on the most precious, the most important, the most rare, the most valuable part of life—living.
We were not fearfully and wonderfully made in all of our uniqueness, our lives masterfully curated, selected for this moment and time for us to distill our lives down to work.
We are meant to live, to delight in ourselves, in life. To make a meaningful difference with our lives…
And yes, that can happen through our job, but let us not be mistaken, our job is not all of who we are.
I want to live my life, to actively and intentionally pursue living—to try new things, not as a means to an end, but for the experience, for the fun, for the joy.
I do not want to arrive at the end of my life having worked myself to death without having lived.
I do not want that for myself or for my children.
I do not want that for you.
So what if we took work out of the center?
What if we replaced it with ourselves?
Instead of focusing all of our energy, time, and resources on striving for success, what if we redirected our resources toward living?
How much more room would we have for the things that matter to us? How much more joy could we have? What if, by putting ourselves in the center, we create space for joy and love and connection to exist? What if that’s the key to impact with ease and enjoyment?
What if the desire for joy is actually an invitation to live, to create a life that includes you?
Learn more about putting yourself in the center and moving from success to significance with my on-demand webinar.
Want to give yourself the time, space, and support to create a joyful, expansive vision of your unleashed life? Apply to join us at our January retreat.
Aisha Crumbine
Ready to create more time, space, ease, and abundance in your life? Take the Unleashed Living Scorecard, and find out where to start.
Want to make an impact without the hustle? In 90 seconds you can discover your achiever type and find out if the thing that's driven you to success could also be the thing keeping you from the next level.
