Have the courage to change your life

Sometimes change is what we need to feel happy

By Charlene

When you feel like life is forcing you down a path of change, let it...

Change can be influenced by many factors (big or small) and it can take just one thing or many to make you want to change your life. For me, it was various things that made me want to relocate and start mine over (mostly the UK weather and the fact I had lost my passion in life).

To some people they didn't understand why I wanted to leave, as I had a good life. I had good friends, a wonderful family, a good job, nice place to live and a comfortable lifestyle. I never truly understood it myself and if I am honest, I spent years wishing that I wasn't someone who would need to leave my family and people I love, or turn their life upside down to find happiness.

But the more time passed, I realised I was that someone. Thinking it was my career that was the main root of the problem, I tried to find jobs that would allow me to travel around the world so that I wouldn't have to leave, but I always ended up based in London. That's when I realised that maybe it was more than just my career, it was my lifestyle and it was at that point I knew that if I wanted to change my life, I would need to rely on myself to make it happen and nobody else.

As I sat at the airport back in January with nothing to my name but a checked in bag and my passport, I asked myself a number of times "is this punishment or a new chance?"...

Was it punishment, in the fact that I had risked losing everything for the unknown or was it a new chance to craft my life on a stronger and healthier foundation - and ultimately, a chance for me to be happy. And of course I firmly believe that it was a chance for me to start something new, a life I felt happy with, presenting me with endless opportunities.

I have to be honest and say that since arriving in Sydney just over a month ago, I feel like I may have put too much pressure on myself to have my life figured out. I have days where I wonder what I am doing with my life and how at 30, I feel like I have nothing. Not appreciating the fact that I have been travelling, there are days where I feel like I might have taken some large steps backwards in my life and feel rather isolated.

But as life intended, I am making the effort to change my life... I have found passion in flying my drone doing aerial photography (a new exciting skill), I am working part-time as a hostess in a Japanese restaurant (flexible hours with a super lovely team), I am learning Spanish and have started to do some freelance work, which allows me to work flexible hours. I have also made an effort to meet new people and am lucky enough to live with two fantastic guys, in a great location just outside of the city. So when I look back on the short time I have been here, I have already achieved so much.

Of course, leaving family, friends and a career back home wasn't easy and when I meet people they ask why I am choosing to work in a restaurant over picking my career back up, and my answer is simple...

"Falling back into my London career would have been the easy option, however what would have I achieved? Whilst I settle into a new place and figure out where I want to be in life, I need the time to focus on me. Therefore trying new things and working on a more flexible schedule is likely going to help me achieve that, more than working all day in an office ever will."

Therefore, my advice to anyone who is looking to relocate, change their life, travel or do something that might stem from change, remember one thing... give yourself time and don't be afraid! Don't be hard yourself and remember to take pride for being brave enough, courageous, confident and daring enough to to start over - because you are an inspiration to everyone who dreams of changing their life too.

I'm eight months in now and I still have no idea what direction my life is heading but whilst I figure it out, rather than having any self-doubt or putting pressure on myself, I am going to focus on doing what makes me happy, continue to grow, put effort into loving myself and finally build a life, which I can be proud of.