If you feel like all your grand plans for this year 2020 have been thrown away off course by everything that is happening now in the world… this may just be what you need right now.
As we approach the second part of the year, most of us reflect on our life and our life’s work as a whole. Especially now with the start of the rainy season and this whole “new normal” situation, a lot of us are staying indoors, which means more (if not “a lot” of) time alone with our thoughts.
I, myself, had my own intense conversation with my head. Maybe it’s just hormones (yep, red days! That time of the month again ☹), maybe it is just the gloomy weather, but whatever it is, I know it is so strong and it wants to be heard.
I started really questioning my existence as a whole…
Have I done enough? Am I enough?
I have dedicated almost ten years of my life, working hard on getting myself into the airline industry (to become a flight attendant). As a student, I already had a vision of myself wearing the sexiest FA uniform with my hand clasped on the handlebar of the stroller bag behind me. I went along with the flow. Every day I hold to that vision. As the years went by, rejection after rejection, I decided to slow down. Maybe I really am wasn’t ready.
I stopped applying for 2 years.
Since late 2017, I devoted to recreating myself. I read books, I work out, practice my communication skills, polished my looks, I studied foreign languages during my free time, learned new skills, and started a new job.
It was fun.
Now, 2020 came. I was ready. I KNOW IN DEEPEST RECESSES OF MY HEART, this was it. I crafted a precise plan which includes getting swimming lessons (to learn how “to tread”), registering for the next Japanese Language Proficiency Test this July, and even enrolling myself in a speech class.
It was a good plan.
And then suddenly… CORONA VIRUS.
The global airline industry lost almost $85 billion and ends up hitting wall of debt. Flights are canceled. Pilots and flight attendants all over the world, if not grounded, are being laid off.
HOW WILL I BECOME A FLIGHT ATTENDANT NOW?
I got sucked deep into the blackhole of thinking about my dreams – about my future. I kept asking myself but just like most of us, I never got the answer right away.
For days, I’ve been searching for answers. I remember I was randomly visiting an officemate in his workstation. We had a quick catch up. We were both scared of what lies ahead of us. I mentioned to him how worried I am that I still don’t know what’s next of my career plans. Then just like that, enlightened words came out from his mouth, something like, “maybe you may want to consider a different path.”
There’s Magic in Detours
When you’re driving and you find yourself approaching a roadblock, it is a no-brainer that you have to pull up and take a detour.
Although it may be discouraging when things do not go according to plan but come to think of it, there is always more than one way to get from where we are right now to where we want to be. Detours may be difficult, confusing, or even frightening – but it can also be beautiful. There’s magic in detours. It forces us to look for new opportunities, dig into our creative energy, and trust our inner self to take on this adventure.
This pandemic made me realize that I can’t just sit by the roadblock and wait for the road to open. I must take a detour.
For those who know me very well, they know I’m a HUGE planner: I like preparing for things in advance. I want everything to be so perfectly put together, edited, conceptualized, etc.
And that’s the whole reason why I’ve been putting off starting my website for 2 years now. I kept reasoning out to myself that I must save first for my dream laptop, invest in a high-speed internet connection, learn about SEO Optimization, SSL, meet the right people who will help me set up the website, etc.
And guess what? It didn’t happen.
After more than two months of my quarantined life, my sense of forget-the-risk-take-the-fall adventure had kicked in. I’d decided to use this time to stretch myself and finally start my passion projects. I also want to challenge myself on how many new experiences I could cram into the next months of the NEW NORMAL. The first thing I did was buy a laptop, then I started messaging friends who are experts in their chosen field. The last thing I knew, I already have my domain name.
And so, I gave birth to www.thepursuerofdreams.com
Writing is just one of my creative outlets but it is never my cup of tea. Above all skills I have, this must be the least I’m confident of. But my blog talks about dreams – and part of my dream is to speak my heart out to the world and make a difference. Who would have thought that I will take blogging seriously and take into the next level to actually set up an official website that would eventually cost me time and money in the future?
It’s a big leap of faith, for sure. But if there’s anything all my experiences have taught me… leaps of faith often leads to major life evolutions.
Take On The Adventure
This was never part of the original 2020 plan, but it turned out to be one of my favorite detours (so far).
Corona Virus gave way for me to make another very important childhood dream of mine to come true –to live by my advocacy of helping people reach their full potential, inspire them to pursue their dreams and live their best life with purpose and intention.
I may be far from being a flight attendant now and still unsure of the future, but I’m already so proud of myself. It wasn’t easy to let go of a 10-year old goal but I had to. No one ever knows what’s really ahead of us but what is important is the present. We must live the dream now instead of waiting for it to happen. Let’s choose to make our detours a part of our adventure – our journey to self-discovery. And along the way, slowly but surely, we will discover inner strengths that we never knew we are capable of doing.
To anyone feeling like they haven’t done enough, or feels scared of the unknown, this I say to you. You already have lots of things to celebrate and be grateful for. Focus on these gifts. Embrace life detours and use it as an opportunity for you to grow.
Thank you so much for reading this entry. Until next time!
