Doing What We Are Destined to Do

Doing what we know is right for us, acting in accordance with our true nature and following our passion. It sounds so simple but it puzzles us, it sounds so reasonable but it confuses us, it sounds so easy but it challenges us. Finding what that is is absolutely crucial to leading a life of fulfilment and happiness. Thus, I feel the need to share a conclusion I have reached after pursuing something I felt passionate about and the rewards I have reaped because I managed to reach that conclusion. These are all notions we know and have heard of before, but also notions we tend to neglect or attach less significance to than we should. Such being the case, I hope that this article will help amplify the voice from within whispering how powerful pursuing something with love and passion can truly be…

Expressing gratitude

On the first day of 2018, I felt the strong need to thank Beijing and China for everything they have given me during this past couple of years. I also wanted to show the world that there is more to Beijing than meets the eye and that China is not exactly what some might think. I decided, therefore, that the best way to express my gratitude and appreciation, while sharing my experience and perspective, would be by writing a LinkedIn article. Collecting memories, thoughts and emotions to positively influence both present and future is a marvellous route towards self-discovery and appreciation for all we‘ve lived through. Even at this very moment, while I look back to the time of writing that article, I have a smile on my face.

In the “The 3 Lessons I Learned in Beijing during 2017 but Apply Everywhere” every word was chosen very carefully, every sentence articulated very lovingly and every message conveyed very caringly. I later realised that the article was not just a document detailing my ideas and experiences, it was, instead, a manifestation of my true nature, an embodiment of my essence and an actualisation of my desire to communicate with the world. It was the beginning of a journey that would not only change my life but also influence the paths of others. 

The Reward:

Tangible: When the Global Recruitment Officer of one of the most renowned PR firms in the world read the article, he invited me for an interview.

Intangible: Realising that I can reach people through my writing, empowered me to believe that the rewards of following one’s passion far outweigh the potential consequences of failure and criticism.

Making Decisions

After reaching those realisations, I decided to continue writing. It was my way to communicate with the world in a very honest and direct way. The second time around, through the “The 3 Pillars of Decision Making”, I wanted to share some alternative ways in which we could approach decision making. By emphasising that 1) taking the time to find out what we really need, 2) being honest about the situation before us and 3) summoning the courage to act upon a choice, I wanted to demonstrate the importance of making the decision that is right for us.

Last year, I left an internship which would later provide me with a “decent” job because I felt that I wanted to pursue something different, something better, something more. Making that decision wasn’t easy. However, deciding to leave one’s comfort zone never is. After undergoing the aforementioned tripartite process, I knew I had found the right answer for me and, as such, I decided to act upon it. It’s incredible how everything seems to fall into place when that happens. Eventually, I ended up doing another internship that I thoroughly enjoyed, I represented a law firm at a global conference in Barcelona and got two management trainee offers from two leading companies in their respective industries. I had worked hard for everything, that goes without saying, but it all started with that single decision to follow my heart. It is that decision that brought me to this point today, sharing my experiences so that others may benefit as well.

The Reward:

Tangible: The article was featured on JingJobs, one of the best job finding platforms in China and I was invited by LifeSkills4Me, a personal development community in Shanghai and Beijing, to give a speech about it.

Intangible: Formed bonds with people I wasn’t really close with or had never met before. We connected because the article provided them with the understanding, the encouragement and the motivation they needed to make the decisions they always wanted to make but didn’t believe were possible.

Conceptualising Success

The third article was “Success, an Unconventional Definition”. It didn’t aspire to define success but instead to remind us that our success is up to us and us alone to define. A book I read, A New Earth, advocated that we shouldn’t “let this crazy world tell us that success is anything more than a successful moment”. In turn, I realised that adhering to society’s interpretation of success is not the best way to go about materialising our own. Even though it took approximately 2 weeks to finish, drafting it was a thoroughly enjoyable process. I had the privilege to spend time conversing with friends, acquaintances, people I admire and whose perspective I respect. We shared views, exchanged opinions and helped each other get closer to our respective truths. We communicated at a level so deep and profound which caused something I knew very well, but seemed to have forgotten, to become astoundingly clear. Doing what we are destined to do, acting in accordance with our true nature and following our passion can connect us to the world and the people around us in ways that we couldn’t have otherwise connected. The energy emanating from those actions is so infectious and has the potential of making a dent in the universe. 

The Reward:

Tangible: Deepened old friendships and placed solid foundations for new ones.

Intangible: Reached one of the most significant and profound realisations of my life.

Final Thoughts

Often times, it’s understanding an experience’s great lesson that leads to us recognising that a reward actually exists. Failing to appreciate the bigger picture leads to failing to acknowledge its potential rewards. Writing those articles has been a beautiful journey of self-discovery and self-improvement. Even though the rewards are being mentioned, they were not what was sought after. The rewards came only because something else was passionately and purposively being brought into existence.

Having said that, I want to emphasise something I strongly believe in; each and every single one of us has a way to serve and make the world a better place. The scale of the impact is not as important as the significance of having the impact itself. Regardless of whether we influence one person or a million, the interconnectedness of things will affect the world in ways we can’t even begin to imagine. In fact, we might never know some of the externalities of our impact but we absolutely shouldn’t underestimate the potential of that impact to better our immediate and extended environment.

I urge you, therefore, find what it is that inspires you, find what it is that completes and gives you joy. Follow it with passion and let your light be a beacon, let your footsteps blaze a new, unpaved trail and let your story be an epitome of fulfilment and purposefulness. Connect to the world in ways you never believed you could, live up to your full potential and visualise yourself becoming all that you have ever dreamed of, simply because… you can.