When we were younger we all painted pictures in our head of us at certain points in our lives. We held onto these pictures until the actual event happened… and some of us are still holding on.
For some of us it was a picture of us at college graduation, in our dream work environment, on our wedding day, our vision of us with our perfect life partner and family, in our dream home, traveling to majestic places, wearing different kinds of clothing at certain points in our lives, shopping at various stores, learning different sports or instruments, living in one or many cities… the list could go on and on.
These pictures we painted were not only of us, but also of people we thought we should be with, places we should be at, how we thought our physical appearance should be, and the appearance of those surrounding us.
Sometimes what happens in real life is that we get to a point where we had a previous picture painted, only to find that our current reality is a complete polar opposite to what we thought it should be. We need to know that this doesn’t mean that where we’re currently at is wrong. It only means that what we thought when we were little kids might not be exactly how it was going to pan out.
For example, when I was younger, I pictured being a second grade elementary school teacher and living in my home town in upstate New York for the rest of my life. However, when I moved to Los Angeles 6 years ago I had no clue that I would be in the position I am currently at, working at a successful Talent Agency & in love with my life. If I had held onto that picture I would most likely be very unhappy and unfulfilled, because it wasn’t what I was meant to be.
It doesn’t mean that what I’m doing is wrong: it is just different than what I thought. The same goes for relationships, lifestyles, homes, clothing styles, etc.
You are always meant to be where you currently are in life… or else you wouldn’t be there. Give yourself a break. Allow yourself to be in that relationship, career or lifestyle choice that you never thought you’d be in and embrace it. Don’t give yourself a hard time because it might not be what you had always imagined… it may just end up being better.
Whenever I’ve gotten discouraged and confused when my real life pictures didn’t mimic the ones I’d always painted in my head, my mom always told me I just needed to paint a new picture.
And if you think that your current picture isn’t what you always thought, I will tell you the same.
Love,
Lindsay