(pic: life is like a pond; the things you have in the pond are those you put into the pond by yourself, except the rain water.)
Many of my friends envy my lifestyle in Sydney; most of my overseas clients ‘want’ to have my lifestyle.
Most of the year, I have flexible working hours and I can work on research and consulting projects that I am deeply interested in; I have no boss. I have time for my triathlon training and occasionally join triathlon races on weekends. I get to swim in the ocean (Google ‘B&B Swim Squad’ at Manly Beach) every weekend with hundreds of fellow swimmers and a lot of beautiful fish underneath me. I have a beautiful family with two children. How could I enjoy such a good lifestyle while keeping my career going and of course, keeping financial investments on check?
The tip is simple: you should create your lifestyle, intentionally.
If you want a flexible working life, then you should work towards it by making decisions that help you achieve this goal. For example, if you hate 9-to-5 office lives, then try to move into a career that doesn’t require a 9-to-5 office style. If you want to enjoy ocean swims on weekend mornings, then it’s even simpler: wake up early and reach Manly Beach by 7am to join the pack. If you want to improve your family life quality, then dedicate some time for family every week (if every night is too challenging for you) and turn off your phone during that short family time. Then you own the same lifestyle as I do! ^_<
However, it’s not as easy as it sounds and this process will be likely to take months or even years until you own the lifestyle you want. Changing a job is sometimes not as easy. Going to the beach by 7am on a Saturday morning may mean that you need to wake up at 5.30am. Spending time with family may mean that you need to move those dinner appointments to somewhere else in your busy work calendar.
The only truth I’ve found so far is that if you don’t take actions, then you will never have the lifestyle you want. You must intentionally embrace change to your life, so you can create the lifestyle you want to have. Your life doesn’t change itself; you need to change your life, intentionally.
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