From burned out to feeling alive

From burnout to feeling alive. And feeling on purpose. What did it take for me to finally take the leap and start contributing to something greater than myself?

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” - Albert Einstein

I must admit, I always laugh when companies pick their values and they all start with the letter C. You hear them often: Collaboration, Commitment, Creativity.

But when I started pondering over my own life and which values have actually brought me to where I am now, I ended up with 6 C’s. Yes, I laughed!

7 "things" with the letter C that have been crucial for taking myself from feeling burned out to being on fire. From a suicidal depressed state (yes, I have been there) to feeling excited and inspired for being alive. 

From not knowing what to do with my life to having a clear goal and direction. From being tired of trading my work hours for money to contributing to a greater cause, something I am passionate about.

Now let’s spool back a bit. 

Tired of trading my hours for money

Living our life to the fullest, doing what we love, using everything we have to give, helping others, making the world a better place. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Most of us want this, but very few actually live it. 

Why?

There comes a time when we reflect on what we really want in life - regarding our work, our relationship, and not in the least, ourselves.

It happened to me about 7 years ago when I lost my job. After I got over the shock (because that’s how it felt), I realized that I had actually been given an unique opportunity to figure out what I really wanted with my life.

I came to the conclusion that I wanted to do something more meaningful, something that made me feel alive and where I could use everything I have in me. 

When everything came together

It took several years until I found what I had been longing for. And all my life experiences came together and collapsed into one clear direction. I started walking from there and never looked back. I now feel more alive than I have ever felt before!

So back to the original question: why do so few people take the leap and live a life they are truly passionate about?

For me it boiled down to, again, 7 C’s.

In my next blog I will start with the first C. See you there!