What I Explored in February
I am good at starting new things, but often struggle with the follow-through. In February I said yes to many new things.
Here are some of the things I said yes to:
Virtual piano lessons
Maintaining a daily yoga and meditation practice
Hiring someone new and conducting/managing interviews
Planning a ski trip
Planning a birthday get-together
Starting a new gym
Reconnecting with old friends
Writing (and marketing) this blog
Organizing finances, and finally
Signing up to be a travel agent
I get so excited about new changes and opportunities that often I rush to say yes and sign up for every opportunity that comes my way and then can’t fully commit to all of them or end up burnt out. I wonder who I got that from (mom :).
“Jack of all trades, master of none” has a strong meaning for me. I have always been proud of my diverse abilities and interest in trying so many different fields and activities. However, it feels disappointing when I cannot reach my full potential in any specific one because I did not commit or put all my eggs in that one basket. The more opportunities there are in a place and at a particular moment, the harder it is for me to narrow my focus. This was particularly true in college when I was presented with more opportunities than I could have imagined and wanted to try them all. I majored in Psychology and loved it. Looking back, I could have put more time into the field, done extra research, and focused on pursuing it in the future, but I decided to also try the cheerleading team and diving team, joined a sorority, and studied abroad. My focus spread out to different activities. This added value to my college experience and shaped me to be who I am, someone who still looks for all the opportunities out there and searches how many of them I can dip my toes into. But after spending this past January and February dipping, I am ready to dive into something and am scared of diving into the wrong pool. I am left wondering which things are worth diving into and what will I ‘miss out on’ by leaving the other ones empty. Where will I put my energy?
In a world of possibilities, I know that if I were to continue pursuing any one of those above items and spend more time, I could grow more and do something bigger. I could learn a bunch of new songs on the piano, become a ~pianist~ and play at different functions. I could sign up for a yoga teacher training and become a yoga teacher… A yogi! Maybe I could keep planning trips and events and become an event coordinator like I always secretly wanted to. I could work out a bunch, get fit, and become a personal trainer or a coach. I could become a serious writer and start writing a book, a financial coach, or a great travel agent. The opportunities are endless. I do not want to feel limited - but after trying all these things in February and wanting to keep trying them, am I going to end up in December having tried so many things but accomplishing nothing? Am I going to regret not devoting more time to one or two things? These are the life questions I ask myself.
Therefore, my intention for March after adding so many new things to my life is to focus on which ones are working for me. I intend to question the activities I am doing and check in with myself to see their impact and the joy they bring. I will ask myself after every writing/piano/yoga/planning session what value it brings and if can I live without this. The beauty of this life is I get to choose which ones I will continue to pursue. And if I find that I have the time to keep pursuing and growing in more, then so be it. After all, I do love to explore :D.
