I wrote about falling, getting up in my previous blog. But let me do it again.
I’ll tell you a secret here, which to those who know me personally it’s not such a secret any more. I keep falling and I keep failing. BUT it’s fun. I know… you’re thinking how failing can be fun? How failure can be fun in the world of success and power? How failure can be so powerful when we are bombarded by motivational speakers "keep going, never give up, success is the only option?" Well, I will tell you now how I look at success and failure all together..
Have you ever tried a sledge in the winter? My home is Poland.. so those from cold countries with cold and snowy winters- YOU know what I mean. :) What I do is: I walk up the hill with the sledge, and then I slide down or fall if you like. Simple, no?
The falling part, it’s the fun part… because… when I am down with my sledge again.. I can now choose different hill. And this is just what I do.
1) I choose a hill,
2) I am walking it up,
3) I am up with the sledge... and I slide down.
Then, I have a chance to choose different hill. The walking up the hill part is difficult. This is when I stretch, I use my muscles, I learn, I think what clothes to put to protect myself. And when I am up - all job done. Now it's the fun time. The slide down.
How does it translate to my day-to-day life?
Personally, I have many interests and I still keep choosing which one I like the most. I get criticised that I do loads of little things that lead me to no where, as I don't focus on one. Also, I have had many different jobs when I did not know what I wanted to do in my life whilst I still had to pay my wi-fi bills. So the path I chose.. was the sledge formula with a motto "Have a slide".
I walk up little hill, I try if I like that particular slide or journey.. and I move on to the next if the answer is "no"… If I particularly like one hill, I will keep sliding from this one for longer. And if I REALLY REALLY like it.. I will try this hill with different sledges, I will try it on a colder day, on more snowy day etc… or maybe I will even build an igloo and stay for a bit longer.
This is just a simple metaphor.. but this is exactly how I figured out what I want to do.. I try different hills, I try my multiple interests and observe which one is the most fun-producing one. When what I chose to do, is not longer fun.. it’s fine… I slide… I fall.. I get up… and I will find another hill to climb.. Or I stop sliding from one hill for a moment and try it again in a while to see if it's still fun after a break. (Maybe in the time given it got new snow, and at some point it will be good slide (fun) again).
Whilst we live in the world that promotes success, power and status.. fun is what I chose. I do things that make me laugh, I have friends that make me laugh, my fun-like life is my success. If I have to fall again and slide - fine, I take it as my choice. I will proudly take it as my success of being okay with failing or falling.
You will now ask me: will this get you anywhere?
And my answer is- it will get me where I want to go... which is the fun journey. It will get me to that feeling of truth inside- when I feel I do things my way- with no external force, forcing me to follow the pattern created by society.
Sometimes the career or a certain life path just come to us. Sometimes we figure out that actually it’s a good path and we want to stay.. and build an igloo and keep sliding from the same hill. It's also OKAY. But if what you do is not creating the "feeling good inside" it is also OKAY to slide again and try different hill. And it's OKAY to keep trying through walking up, sliding down, walking up... and so on....
Kinga
