I recently heard a story about a girl who was very consistent with working out. It’s a story I’m going to share with you all now.
During the holidays, the girl got busy and faltered on her consistent exercise regime. She said that she possibly worked out twice throughout the whole month of December. Come January she told herself that she had to kick it back into high gear. I think she did some sort of high-intensity interval training workout classes because she mentioned she had to use weights. Apparently, she had been using the 5 lb. weights before the New Year. Well, come January and come the new year, she got to her HIIT class which was rather full, and they only had 15 lb. weights left.
She could have left and returned the following day, but she knew she needed to get back in her exercise groove. She made the choice to level up and use the 15 lb. weights. Of course, it was a struggle at first, but now she uses the 15 lb. weights in every one of her HIIT classes. Had she not allowed herself that chance to succeed, she would have never seen what she was capable of. This story is so moving for me.
It prompted me to think about the last time I really felt like I leveled up my life. Don't get me wrong, I have accomplished small challenges along the way. I haven't been sitting idle these past three years.
April 2017 was a kicker month for me.
I graduated from college a year prior. I was single, living at my parent's house in Las Vegas, and working multiple jobs until I could find something that fit my degree suitably.
Well, the stars must have aligned because after about a year of job searching for an Events Coordinator position that was legit, one flew across my LinkedIn. And let me tell you, job searching is kind of like online dating. A lot of it sounds too good to be true and it usually is. A friend and I were both looking in the same market and we literally had to check with one another if a job we found was legit or not and if we should apply for it. We weren't competing with each other; we were competing with the market.
I interviewed for a Special Events Coordinator job at a local non-profit organization. I honestly felt like I bombed the interview. They asked me all these questions about fundraising and although I had the non-profit experience, I don't recall relaying any of that information. You all know how important interviews go though…
Besides, I must've done something right because they called me back and offered me a job. The job they offered me was exactly what I wanted to do, but the pay was not where I wanted to be. (Is it ever in the beginning?) I was making more, a lot more, at my current day job. This was a tough decision for me because I had other goals of getting a car and an apartment. I don't know if I had the funds to do that with this job. It took me about a week to call them back.
I decided to "do the damn thing" and get my adult years started!
I took the job. I took the financial risk because this would start my career in the field I wanted to be in. Something felt really good about that because it set off more movements for me.
I decided it was time to grow up. Like really grow up. Risk it on my own. I had some savings and I thought, well what's the point of saving if I never put myself in a position to use it. This was 23 years old me thinking I am in a different money mindset now. I started apartment hunting. At the same time, I really wanted a more adult car. My 2008 standard Hyundai Accent was great for college, but at a minimum I wanted something with 4 doors. I lowballed my paycheck and started my searches.
By the end of April 2017, I had started my new job, found a one-bedroom apartment babe cave that I called home, and leased a Honda Civic. Oh, and did I mention, the week I started my first job I went out with some friends to celebrate and I met the guy of my dreams, who I am still with to this day.
Sheesh. I had no idea how big of an impact that April 2017 was going to have on my life, but here I am. The reason I bring all of that up is that April 2020 just came and went, and I had to do a life assessment. My 3-year job anniversary came up. My lease was due. I didn't have to apartment hunt again because I moved in with my boyfriend after 2 years (April of 2019).
I think it is clear that April is my month to level up. It is super important to reflect on our accomplishments and see where we are in life. It's been three years since I really put myself out there and did something I was completely unsure of. Three years later, it was the best decision I could have made because now I level up my life on a more consistent basis. I am always trying new things, keeping busy, seeing what my next move is, and I think I owe a lot of my playful creativity to that time frame three years ago.
So guys, when did you last level up? Let’s discuss in the comments below.
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