life with no regrets
I had a conversation with some friends tonight, and we briefly touched on a subject that is very interesting to me because I have made myself an experiment in this very area. We were discussing a movie (which I have not seen) and a comment that a woman in the movie makes about how her degree on the wall doesn't keep her warm at night. I believe at the end of the movie she makes a decision to change her lifestyle to reflect what she actually wants. Again I have not seen this movie, so this is based off of my thoughts of what the people I was talking with said.
This subject is fascinating to me because I have spent a lot of time thinking about what I really want out of life. I had many people tell me what they thought I should do or be, all of whom I am sure were well intentioned. However, at the end of the day I had to be the one to decide what I wanted and why I wanted it.
I am very good at economics. It is how my brain works. It just makes sense to me. It took me years to realize that the majority of people struggle with understanding basic economics because my brain is just hard wired to understand it. I have no doubt that if I had chosen to go into graduate studies in economics I would have been very successful. If I would have chosen to pursue degrees and climb a corporate ladder in a large city, I would have been living life in the fast lane and going 90 miles an hour. I could have been published in major economics journals and presenting at conferences. But where would that have left me? With degrees on my wall and a cold apartment in a city that doesn't care about me?
I chose a different path. It isn't nearly as exciting. It is quiet, simple, and honestly quiet slow paced. I decided that what was really important to me was not the degrees I could accumulate, nor the wealth I could gain, nor the prestige I could receive. Rather I decided that what is really important to me is people, community, being life-giving, being invested in eternal things, and the way I wanted my life to look in the future. That is a beautiful thing about my economics brain: I think long term almost all of the time.
I'm not going to tell you that the path I didn't choose wasn't alluring, because it was very tempting to me. But I looked down that path, and I saw a lonely life, a life where I would be dedicated to my work and loose sight of the important things.
The decision that I made was to put up with some light and momentary trials because the reward was so much greater. My number two strength is strategic. I have carefully ordered my life decisions to reflect the life that I want to have. There have definitely been moments of questioning. Did I make the right decision to walk away from the life I could have had? But when I look back over these years from the perspective that I have now, I know that I made the right choice. I know that because I see God's fingerprints all over my path. I know that because my life is full and abundant. I know that because my heart is full of joy, hope, and light. I know I made the right decision because I look back, and I have no regrets.
This subject is fascinating to me because I have spent a lot of time thinking about what I really want out of life. I had many people tell me what they thought I should do or be, all of whom I am sure were well intentioned. However, at the end of the day I had to be the one to decide what I wanted and why I wanted it.
I am very good at economics. It is how my brain works. It just makes sense to me. It took me years to realize that the majority of people struggle with understanding basic economics because my brain is just hard wired to understand it. I have no doubt that if I had chosen to go into graduate studies in economics I would have been very successful. If I would have chosen to pursue degrees and climb a corporate ladder in a large city, I would have been living life in the fast lane and going 90 miles an hour. I could have been published in major economics journals and presenting at conferences. But where would that have left me? With degrees on my wall and a cold apartment in a city that doesn't care about me?
I chose a different path. It isn't nearly as exciting. It is quiet, simple, and honestly quiet slow paced. I decided that what was really important to me was not the degrees I could accumulate, nor the wealth I could gain, nor the prestige I could receive. Rather I decided that what is really important to me is people, community, being life-giving, being invested in eternal things, and the way I wanted my life to look in the future. That is a beautiful thing about my economics brain: I think long term almost all of the time.
I'm not going to tell you that the path I didn't choose wasn't alluring, because it was very tempting to me. But I looked down that path, and I saw a lonely life, a life where I would be dedicated to my work and loose sight of the important things.
The decision that I made was to put up with some light and momentary trials because the reward was so much greater. My number two strength is strategic. I have carefully ordered my life decisions to reflect the life that I want to have. There have definitely been moments of questioning. Did I make the right decision to walk away from the life I could have had? But when I look back over these years from the perspective that I have now, I know that I made the right choice. I know that because I see God's fingerprints all over my path. I know that because my life is full and abundant. I know that because my heart is full of joy, hope, and light. I know I made the right decision because I look back, and I have no regrets.
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