From Risk to Reward
Dream it, Believe it, Go for it
2017, The Year of Risk
Each year, I create a theme that provides me with focus and clarity. 2017 was my year of risk. I needed to make some big life changes to meet my personal goals this past year. “Year of risk,” you say? Yeah, sounds pretty scary, right? I’m sure most people would pick the year of comfort (my theme from 2014 - 2016) over the year of risk. Because, hey, everyone loves comfort. Well, I’m here to tell you to step out of your comfort zone to move closer towards your goals. Putting myself in uncomfortable situations was the best thing I did for myself. The risk I took this year (and in the past) has allowed me to get closer to my present dreams. Yes, it can be unsettling, uncomfortable, and straight up terrifying to put yourself in susceptible situations; but no matter what happens, you will always learn and grow which is the ultimate reward.
It’s Not Cliché: Listen to Your Gut and Follow Your Heart
The first big risk I took was in January 2009. I was 22 years-old, young and honestly pretty naive; the perfect combination to move across the country (notice my sarcasm?) I moved from my comfortable home state of Massachusetts to the unknown city of Richmond, Virginia. I had a promising job in Boston, the best friends anyone could ask for, and most importantly, my family. So why did I move to a place where I knew absolutely no one? Whatever the reason was, I followed my gut and I’m so thankful I did because it led me to where I am today.
Flash forward to December 2011. Just as I was settling into my new city, I decided to yet again pick up and move. This time, I relocated from Richmond to Chicago for a job opportunity. I was three years older, and certainly wiser. I have to thank my Mum for pushing me to take the risk to move to Chicago (she always knows best.) I remember feeling very homesick about moving by myself and not knowing anyone. The homesickness I felt quickly began to diminish as I started getting involved in activities and meeting incredible friends. During year two in the city, I met my boyfriend, Matt, and that’s when my Chicago life really began to take off. What I thought would be a short stint in Chicago ended up being six magnificent years filled with love, friendship, and personal growth.
My Chicago life was incredible. I loved the energy of the city and the excitement of always exploring something new. Although I had a circle of best friends, a new family I adore, and a fulfilling career, the only two things missing were 1) my family 2) the active and outdoors lifestyle I love. You know those sayings, “listen to your heart” and “trust your gut?” They are real feelings. Those innate feelings are different for everyone, but for me, my heart and gut were sending strong, comforting signals that told me it was time to return home (after nine years of being away.) These deep signals pushed me to take risks to lead me where I wanted to be. This was an extremely difficult decision to make, but I knew deep down this was the right path to pursue.
Before making any major life change (especially the risky ones,) it’s so important to have a tactical plan in place. We create these types of plans in our career all the time, so why not do the same thing for big life steps? Here are the steps I took to tackle my life-change strategy.
How to take steps that lead you closer to your dreams.
Write down your goals. Remember, we can only outline our goals and make decisions based on the information we have at that current time.
Weigh the pros & cons to confirm direction. I find writing them down side by side is helpful to visualize.
Map out your plan and timeline. Use sticky notes to lay out goals and the action items that need to happen to meet your goals. Timeline the sticky notes out with specific dates to keep you on track.
Have a backup plan. Know that your backup plan can always be going back to where you started.
Start with small steps that will lead the way. This could just be starting a conversation about your goals. Make sure to have the difficult conversations with significant others, family, friends, managers, etc. You’ll be surprised what those conversations can lead to.
Risk to Reward
Always feel empowered to move your life in the direction you want, no matter how difficult it may seem. I took the steps I outlined above and the risk led to the ultimate reward. I now live closer to my family, working at the same job I love, and have the freedom to spend time with my family and friends around the world. I am continuing to find opportunities to live the mindful, yet active lifestyle, I crave. My goals may change, and that’s okay; because the beautiful thing about life is that I am in control of what is next. We all are.