Prescriptions for Life

Great thoughts, Susan. Sweet and simple. They prompted one of those "aha" moments for me.

This is actually a question I have been asking myself recently, and I thought that I should "pick one." Thanks SO much for your post. That said, I do have a TON of questions.

• What are the costs? What do you have to give up to have this kind of journey and flexibility? Some of my concerns are
  • Geographically close friends - No matter where you go, you may have close friends, but if you move place to place I would imagine you'd always have to "start over" with hang-out buddies.
  • Family - I also can't imagine taking on a journey like this while married. It would be a constantly unstable situation for your spouse, and (it seems to me) it's out of the question if you have kids.
  • Finances - I doubt it would be reasonable to go to engineering graduate school, get an MBA, then medical school, then law school. What kind of financial considerations and struggles did you encounter on your journey?
  • Time - Again, I don't want to get married when I'm 40.
• Marriage and family - For many, raising a family is a fulfilling purpose. But this is something that you can't just try out. How does this factor into your "don't just pick one" advice?
• Universality - Is your advice for everyone? Are there some people for whom this advice would be a bad idea?
  • Means - Is this something that only those with the means and the opportunity can pursue? Or does everyone have this opportunity as long as they seek it, regardless of how poor you are or what kind of country you live in?
  • Age - I would guess you wouldn't recommend 60-year-olds to do this...or would you?
  • Mental illness - What if you have a proprensity for depression, or bipolar disorder, etc.? Moving around would require finding a trusted friend every time, or may be very stressful and cause you to have a depressive episode.
• Serenity - Isn't there value in accepting your "lot in life"? How do you know you aren't simply being dissatisfied with everything, like a picky eater who won't accept even the finest foods?
• Romance - (You can probably detect a strong theme here. =D) Do you have to stay single during this journey? Is it ethical to pursue a relationship while you know that it is likely that you will change location? Or, more to the point, isn't it quite difficult to date if you don't know what you want out of life?

I probably have more questions, but that should be plenty for now. I guess you have an outline for your next few posts. =D Thanks so much again.

Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, and you ask some really excellent questions. I'll do my best to address them, briefly!

First, I wasn't presenting my own example as a model for everyone to follow - in the post I stressed that everyone's path seems to be very unique. My goal was to encourage people to trust the path which life seemed to be leading them on, particularly if it didn't seem to be "like everyone else's". I know mine's a pretty extreme example of a path with many twists and turns. My point was that it turned out wonderfully in the end, which was a source of great relief to me, and hopefully a source of hope to others on a similarly windy road.

By the way, your "purpose" doesn't necessarily have to be fulfilled through your job or means of earning income, some people find their purpose through the things they do on the weekend, or on special trips that they take during vacation time. Again, it's totally individual, and depends on what works best for your unique life.

Your questions about different aspects of life, such as friends, marriage, finances, mental illness etc. bring out an important point: in following the path that's right for you, by definition you'll make choices that feel right for your personality and strengths/weaknesses, that support who you are.

I love to move to different places, and make new friends easily. That's part of the joy for me. I followed my heart by taking a solo trip to Mexico 6 years ago, and met my husband there. Now that I'm married, my life has stabilized somewhat, but he's a "gypsy" too, so we're already planning how to create a life where we can live between at least two countries. It's just worked out that way.

Re. family, you'll recall that I mentioned that some paths you try may naturally fall away, and other aspects stay along for the long haul. I don't have kids yet, but if/when I do, I will do everything I can to ensure they thrive. Trying out different paths doesn't mean that (before beginning) you don't consider carefully the pros and cons of what could happen, and how you might handle different potential outcomes.

I think I've made it clear that my post really isn't intended for everyone, as there obviously are people out there for whom "just pick one" or "just pick two", etc., works extremely well. I wrote this for individuals like you, who might resonate with, or are experiencing, this kind of path.

I didn't have much material support for what I did - I paid my schooling through scholarships, and still had student debt when I moved to Mexico. I paid my way during the years in Mexico through various creative means I came up with, including my flamenco dance company. It definitely wasn't easy, there were many obstacles and setbacks and days I didn't know if I could pay the rent, but I absolutely loved the freedom of the whole journey, and what it taught me about me, happiness, fulfillment & life.

I think it's important for you to be clear (to your best ability) about who you are, your most important priorities and values, your goals for your life, and what you "need" to be happy, well-balanced, and feel good about yourself and your life. If you know the answers to those questions, it's easier to know which path you might reasonably want to try out, and which might jeopardize your well-being.

I've sure had a lot of fun along the way, and as I mentioned, the challenges I've met along the way have only made me stronger and (I believe) a better person. I hope that helps!

You have officially dated yourself! Sorry, that sentence was totally funny - but on a serious note, I guess the point is..... things change, life changes, and thusly, so do you, and what's important to you! I didn't get myself aligned for my current skill set until I was 27 years old...

PS. Flamenco is MUCH more elegant.

OMG, I had totally forgotten about The Solid Gold Dancers". They had really cute outfits although they were a bit on the skimpy side. This was an article that took a turn I wasn't expecting. So you are stating that after all that you have achieved you are still finding your purpose in life? Sometimes I wonder how some people begin singing at the age of 6, spend their entire lives making songs, and that seems to be all they do all their lives. I have always felt rejected from life's stream because I have bounced from one idea to another. I have been successful at everything and yet I feel like I havent mastered any. I stumbled across this article, searching for medical facts on why it is important for our growth to know our purpose. Now I am faced with looking at the article from a different perspective. I hate that simply because I feel distracted. Anyway, maybe we shouldn't worry so much about our purpose and just enjoy who we are for the moment. Thank You for sharing.

Thanks for the article and I'm going to try your approach.

I am 30 year old who I believe thank God lived a good life. Have a beautiful family, work from home, make good living and travel between countries. But I still cannot find myself. I keep on talking to my friends how I'm gonna do this or that and in the end I get bored of things and never really finish them. Once I know how to achieve something I lose interest in achieving.

My job is in IT and I compensate for being lost by spending all my time on internet trying to solve different unnecessary programming puzzles. I thought that programming was my calling but now I realise I only do it for money and meanwhile I cannot find my true interest or hobby or something.

This condition is daunting me. The sad thing is it in a way stops me from spending quality time with my family. And believe me I don't want to be like this for the rest of my life.

Sorry for wining, I guess I needed to just write it. Maybe there's someone out there who had the same experience could give me an advice.

Your article is encouraging and I will try to explore every single idea I have, but I feel like I want to put all my efforts into something I really like.

Again, sorry for wining and thanks for listening.