Perfection doesn't exist and either does a strict timeline/plan for life, but yet those are two things I have strived for all my life. From a young age I have always felt like I have been fighting against the clock to check things of a list to say I completed them. I think being in your twenties amplifies the anxiety to hit more checks marks.
Graduate College: Check (did it a semester early .. double check)
Find a job: Check (find a job I love.. double check)
Find a husband: Uncheck
Buy a house: Uncheck
Have children: Uncheck
No surprise here, but life is not a check list. Who even created this so called list that I was told to complete?Life is to be lived, but unfortunately majority of us are in an never-ending race with ourselves and a random timeline. I have learned that there is no "right" age or time on when something needs to be "done". I have missed a lot of great moments in my life by being too worried about the next move/thing.
This last month has really thrown me for a loop and made me take a step back. I realized that although I love everything that I am doing in my life I am not living to the best of my abilities. I am not doing that because I am still paralyzed by future thinking.
I have been really stressed about buying a house because in my head that was the next thing that needed to be done. I went and looked at homes with my mom and even put an offer on one. A lot of great things were happening during this time frame, but all I was focused on was the house. Life was passing me by. I was so stressed one day about it I completely shut down. I couldn't focus on anything else. Something clicked when I just realized I have to crawl before I walk and ultimately I was in control.
I decided to go out that day and rent out an apartment - really spontaneous for someone who lives a calculated life. That one decision caused a big shift in my life. I realized that you have to trust the timing of your life, don't let life past you by, and it is okay to make your own twist and turns in life. If there is something you have been debating about for a while, make a decision, and just figure it out along the way.
Throw out whatever script your parents or society told you and just create your own. Here's to creating your own story and living better everyday (without the checklist).