Are You Using Your Life Up, Or Is It Using You Up? Vol. 654, November 30, 2023

Many people would consider living alone in a foreign country where one does not know the language making communication difficult to be rather lonely.

Well, to tell you the truth, when one knows how to occupy one’s time one will not be lonely. However, there is much to be said about being able to spend one’s time doing what one wants to do at any given time without having to worry about what is expected by someone else or even the culture itself.

Though, yesterday while I was on the computer during a session with a client the grandkids of the owners were standing on a stool outside my window where the balcony is located. I had the door open to allow fresh air in. The kids were wanting to interact with me. So, after the session, I went outside to interact with them. The boy who I think was around 7 or 8 years old spoke perfect English. The little girl who looked to be 4 or 5 years old spoke zero English. It was a fun 20 minutes or so out in perfect weather till their parents were ready to take them home.

But, that is not the point of this post. For that, I need to tell you about a video I was just watching of a billionaire or so he claims who had bought all the fancy expensive items that one who makes a ton of money is supposed to buy living in the US – a huge house that comes with all the taxes, repairs, and staff to keep it all up, a fancy car that is hard to drive anywhere fearful of being in an accident in it, and expensive to upkeep, and the fancy watches and suits.

You know what? He got rid of all of it and lives in a place with a stand-up desk and a bed and that is all. He concentrates all his time and energy on his businesses because he has found that this is where his greatest enjoyment comes from and everything else is a distraction.

Now, anyone who knows me personally knows that I do enjoy some of the finer things in life. However, what I have come to realize is that stuff can be a burden. In fact, as those of you who follow my writing here know, I need to leave Albania for 3 months and then I can come back for another year on another tourist visa.

One of the things that I need to deal with is what to do with the stuff that I do not want to take with me because I do not want to pay extra fees for heavy baggage for the short flight from here to Serbia. So, even with the relatively small amount of personal stuff I have with me, it is now more than what I could bring with me given the new stuff that I bought while my Godson was here visiting in April. So, stuff can be a burden.

I am going to see if I can just leave the stuff I do not need here knowing that I am returning here. I do not think that will be a problem since I will be staying for another year upon my return – but it is just an example of what a pain having stuff can be.

The other point this entrepreneur made was that it truly does matter what one is doing to make an income. He had been a part of a company with partners which was how he made his money, but received zero fulfillment from the work involved. He wanted out and just walked away. He did not ask to be bought out, he just left and went off on his own to concentrate on creating businesses where he cared about what he was doing for his clients.

It is not an easy road, to go out on one’s own to create something out of nothing. Yet, that is where all the fun and excitement comes from, when one is doing something that matters in this world. And, to tell you the truth I would never be able to be employed by another person this late in my life because I have seen the stupid manner in which businesses especially where people are dependent on knowledge, insight, and compassion are necessary to do much more harm than good over the years. No thanks!

You may not be a person who needs the type of independence that the gentleman whose video I watched requires, but you are indeed a person who would be best served doing work that matches your values in a workplace that respects your contribution.

Never be fearful of taking the steps to breathe into your life by doing those things that you believe in. Yes, there will be missteps along the way, but that is also where the greatest fulfillment comes by overcoming them and growing in the process, finding out what you are made of – much more than perhaps you are giving yourself credit for at the moment never having tested yourself…it this applies to you.

Take some time to think about these ideas because life is short…it goes by quickly…and you want to know that you used up your life instead of it using you.