Where It All Began
It all began with the realization that I am about to turn 40. Well, I'm about to turn 40 on June 3, 2016 (more than a year away), but that doesn't change the fact that the catastrophizing had already begun. I started lining up the self-judgments like soldiers on a firing line.
I'm not married. BOOM!
In fact, I'm divorced. BOOM!
I don't have children. BOOM!
I haven't taken a vacation in years. BOOM!
I don't have a degree beyond my bachelors. BOOM!
With a firing squad like that, it's no wonder I have been frozen in life. I live in fear that making a move will result in me getting shot. Pretty much every standard of traditional success in life was a fail, fail, fail.
Then, I was lucky enough to stumble upon Pathways Institute and I learned exactly what I was doing to myself. I was shoe-horning myself into a way of life and limiting my choices. In many cases, I didn't give my heart a chance to speak at all. My mind ruled supreme and it was a heck of a dictator. I felt strangled, stunted, and behind the curve.
Surely, I thought, there's a better way to deal with approaching mid-life than mini panic-attacking my way to the big 4-0. Sure, I was trying new things. But I wasn't giving those things a chance to make an impact. I'd make a vision board and then I'd file it away. I'd meditate furiously every night for a week and then forget about it. I wouldn't give my heart a chance to respond.
Like an addict, I was just looking for a fix - something to fix me.
Then, it hit me, 40 by 40.
I would try 40 new, audacious, out-of-character, amazing things by the time I am 40. Then, I felt something I hadn't in years, real inspiration. I'd not only give these things time to sink in, I'd help them sink in to others. I'd (gasp) add to the stream of live versus take, take, taking from it!
WHAT A CONCEPT!
What if, just WHAT IF, I could build a community of women (and a few enlightened men) who are living mid-life to the fullest?
What if, just WHAT IF, those women and men could inspire each other to try new things, live bigger, better, more amazing, envy-worthy lives?
And what if, just WHAT IF, I allow you to inspire me?
Wouldn't mid-life seem like the START of my life at that point? Wouldn't this be the hallmark of a new beginning, a new way of thinking, a way of embracing opportunity and experience like I never have before?
What do you do to live life to the fullest? Please comment below and join the community discussion.
Welcome to 40 by 40!