Halfway Through My Twenties…
I turned 25 on June 25, 2023. I’m halfway through my twenties… WOO!
Most of us spend our twenties wishing we were older. We want to look older, have more adult-like responsibilities, break away from our parents, and plant more permanent roots for our futures. From an outsider’s perspective, becoming an adult is a glamorous and cultivated right of passage. It’s filled with the achievement of dreams and the establishment of true independence. It’s the idea that you’re one step closer to having your life "fully figured out.” Reality check… that’s never going to happen. There is no way we will ever have our lives “completely set up.”
For all of us, that's scary and something we often refuse to accept. We spend our entire lives searching to become “comfortable.” And I’m not talking comfortable in terms of finances. I’m talking comfortable in terms of life as a whole.
As humans, we crave security and consistency. We shy away from change because uncertainty makes us uncomfortable. But, what if the change we’re too afraid to embrace is the same change needed to make us wildly happy… or even just happier?
“Would you rather be comfortable or happy?”
I came across this question in September of 2023… and this perspective changed my life.
I was comfortable in Wisconsin. I had a job as a personal trainer, and I LOVED it. I was surrounded by my family, who I’m closer than close with. I coached two dance teams. I had my friends and my old college hangouts… I had my life. But despite all that, it still felt like something was missing. I knew deep down that if I stayed in Wisconsin, I would be “good” with that… but I always thought I could be “great” somewhere else.
I graduated from Marquette with a bachelor's in psychology. I promised myself I would never get too comfortable to abandon my dream of going back to school. I had plans to further my education after undergrad. Unfortunately, COVID and a few rejections forced me to postpone that dream. However, it was still very much alive in my head.
I quickly decided that more school was the answer and sports psychology was the avenue. After doing my homework on programs and schools, I fell in LOVE with the sports psychology and motor behavior program at the University of Tennessee. However, I quickly realized that attending school at UT meant moving 10 hours away from home... to a place where I knew NO ONE.
Scary doesn’t even begin to describe that thought, but I applied, was accepted, and moved anyway.
So, in a full reflection (now that I am halfway through my twenties), I've decided that comfort might just be the silent killer of happiness. It is critical we consistently ask ourselves:
"Would I rather be comfortable or happy?”
My answer is happy. So, as I live and learn (and blog about it)… my only hope is that you’ll see life is so much better when you let go of fear and embrace vulnerability.
Virtual hugs,
Steph
