Hello Roses,

Do you remember when you wanted to be where you are now? Do you remember being stressed that you wouldn’t find the right job, that you wouldn’t get the result you wanted from Uni? But look at you, you are here now in a job you love with a University Degree. One of my biggest problems is I do not look back to see how far I’ve come. I’m always longing to be in the future.

Thankfully, I am not alone in this. As I have mentioned before, I am unsatisfied with being satisfied (read Blog #4) and although this is not the worst trait to have, it does sometimes leave me high and dry. I’m starting to think there is a happy balance between wanting to achieve more and being happy with where you are – especially if you are in a place you never thought you’d be. A few years ago I genuinely didn’t think I would ever learn to drive. Due to my medical condition, I was not able to learn for many years. Last year however, I passed my driving test and every time I get into the driver’s seat I still can’t believe it. I love it because it reminds me of how far I have come in the space of a few short years.

Looking back at where you were can be such a huge motivating factor to drive you forward even more. But it is extremely important to be grateful for where you are, right now and what you have around you. Humans inherently look for the bad to try and protect ourselves from danger, but five minutes of looking at all the positives in your life can have such an uplifting effect on your mood. I encourage you all to try it now. What are the things you thought you’d never have? Are you grateful for them, or are you on to the next thing you want?

Bringing it back to business, I find it easy to get frustrated about how far I have to go and what the future will look like. However, there have been many people who I have spoken to who are where I want to be that have told me they did exactly the same only to find the very beginning is where they wish they could go back to. I feel lucky to have been given this information before it was too late and am therefore trying to embrace the uncertainty, the excitement of what could happen, all the while looking back at what I have already achieved – however small.

If you are feeling stuck or claustrophobic about where you currently are in your career/life, I hope I have given you a helpful reminder that it is okay not to be where you want to be just yet. In fact it’s good because you can now enjoy the journey safe in the knowledge that you will get there.

Lots of love,

Em x