{"id":26031,"date":"2014-05-21T20:35:16","date_gmt":"2014-05-22T04:35:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/?p=26031"},"modified":"2015-09-07T10:08:51","modified_gmt":"2015-09-07T18:08:51","slug":"5-reason-less-gives-freedom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/5-reason-less-gives-freedom\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Reason Why Having Less Gives You Freedom"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I am 39 years of age.\u00a0 If you looked at my life, you\u2019d probably say I don\u2019t have much.\u00a0 In the material sense of the word, you\u2019d be right.\u00a0 You\u2019d no doubt presume that I\u2019d fallen on hard times!\u00a0 Yet, what you don\u2019t see, looking at my life from a purely superficial level; is at the present moment I have must more than I ever had before.<\/p>\n

I have a life of freedom.\u00a0 A life I\u2019ve always wanted, give or take a few goals I would like to achieve, but in a nutshell I am pretty blessed. \u00a0I am happier, more positive and peaceful person and for the first time in my life I am living my life on purpose.<\/p>\n

Where did I come from?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Oh boy, I thought I had it all!\u00a0 Earning a substantial amount of money working as Head of HR for a small company in London, getting to travel the world and buying whatever I wanted.\u00a0 I had it made, and in a way I did, I just didn\u2019t think I deserved it at the time; so bit by bit I started to lose my way.\u00a0\u00a0 I\u2019d gotten into drugs; I\u2019d sleep around, looking for any kind of love and I became depressed.\u00a0 It was as if the more successful I became, the more I was determined to destroy it!<\/p>\n

I was living in a high pressurized environment, my job was super stressful, mainly because my self-worth was at an all-time low, and the demand from high above was awful.\u00a0 I was the only female in Management and although I\u2019d like to think it was a bonus, perhaps an advantage, it really wasn\u2019t.\u00a0 The sexist remarks, constant pressure to be someone I wasn\u2019t and trying to \u2018fit in\u2019 with the boys took its toll.<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t being me, whoever that was, so I turned to alcohol, drugs and sex to try to numb the pain. Then one day I broke, I remember just sitting in the shower huddled in the corner crying, asking \u2018why do I feel like this when I have everything?\u2019\u00a0 I\u2019d finally crumbled, my mind and my body could take no more and this was a sign!<\/p>\n

I decided things had to change and change fast! I quit my job, arranged to move back home and try to \u2018find myself\u2019.\u00a0\u00a0 It all sounds rather grand, but it wasn\u2019t, there were no instant realizations, no feeling that I knew what I wanted to do with my life in an instant.\u00a0 No, I still had a way to go, but at least I was on the journey and change was imminent.<\/p>\n

JK Rowlings said \u2018rock bottom became a solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life\u2019 and I tend to think that, at that moment, it was my rock bottom.\u00a0\u00a0 My spirit was crushed, I didn\u2019t know which way to turn and the only option was to go up, because going any further down would mean utter despair!<\/p>\n

Where am I now?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since then, I\u2019ve moved a few more times, I\u2019ve tried various jobs and even had another disastrous long term relationship. It wasn\u2019t until May 2013 that I turned the page and things started to finally slot into place.\u00a0 I quit my then job, became single again, sold everything and moved in with my mother!<\/p>\n

Drastic you might think, but I had to start over and this seemed the only way. I had to get back to grass roots and find out what exactly my purpose was on this planet. \u00a0Although it didn\u2019t feel like it at the time, it was the best thing I\u2019d ever done.<\/p>\n

I found out that having less meant a freedom like no other and here are a few reasons why\u2026.<\/p>\n

I could work on my own dreams<\/strong><\/p>\n

It gave me the chance to find out what I was passionate about, my desires and what following my heart meant.\u00a0 I was tired of working for other people in making their dreams happen.\u00a0 I knew I could do the same, so instead of looking for another job I could do and die slowly inside, I chose to take a course online to find out my true life\u2019s purpose, what I loved to do and then build a business round that!<\/p>\n

I found out I could write!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Soon after my split from my partner back in May 2013, I started to write a blog about my daily ramblings and hobbies.\u00a0 As I started to write, I found a new desire to express myself through my blog and it felt wonderful!\u00a0 I\u2019d finally found my voice, I could speak without being told I was wrong or told to be quiet.\u00a0 I felt liberated and writing slowly brought the real me back and I embraced it fully at every opportunity.<\/p>\n

Being single isn\u2019t so bad<\/strong><\/p>\n

For so long I\u2019d been with a man in one form or another, either in a relationship or caught up in some web of desire somewhere.\u00a0 This was the first time I was totally and utterly single, with no man to make me feel special, sexy or awesome. \u00a0I knew I had to do that all by myself.\u00a0 It was difficult at first, especially as I was totally reliant on someone else\u2019s opinion of me, but a year on it\u2019s the best thing I ever did!\u00a0 I choose to love me and I know that my own love will get me through anything!<\/p>\n

Work less and earn less<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was one of the hardest lessons.\u00a0 I decided that I had to earn money whilst I worked on my dreams, so I took a part time cleaning job.\u00a0 I chose it because it would mean I could write through the day and clean at night, plus it was the type of job where you didn\u2019t need to take your work home!\u00a0 It was hard because I had to make sure I didn\u2019t define myself by my work otherwise it could get me down, and the money wasn\u2019t that great, but it was paying my rent and bills and that\u2019s all that mattered.<\/p>\n

I gave up drugs and alcohol<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was one of the first things I did, mainly because I was tired of how they both made me feel.\u00a0 Oh don\u2019t get me wrong I had some good times, however I now know that if you want to make something of your life you have to do it feeling good.\u00a0 You\u2019ll understand, most certainly with regard to alcohol, the day after a big session can be hell.\u00a0 So it was an easy choice to make. I could either stay stuck doing work I hate, being the party girl or go after my dreams, let go of the social life for a while and feel great \u2013 it was a no brainer!<\/p>\n

Those are some of the things I\u2019ve done to date.\u00a0 I still live with my mother but I\u2019ve created a new life for myself which is the exact opposite of the old me.\u00a0 I\u2019ve lost friends along the way, my social life is only once a month (if I am lucky), but I am doing what I love. I\u2019ve just written my first book about this journey, I\u2019ve met some wonderful new and inspiring people along the way and doors of opportunity keep opening!<\/p>\n

I finally feel free and it can be so simple to obtain. You just have to believe in what you know within your heart , let it guide you in the right direction and have faith in what will be will be.\u00a0 Most of all being grateful for all you have every single day, this is absolutely key to creating a life of your dreams, because you\u2019ll have more things to be grateful about!<\/p>\n

So are you ready to find your freedom? What\u2019s it really worth to you?<\/p>\n

Paula<\/strong> loves people and connecting. She has spent her life going from one experience to another ranging from her love life to her career choices. You can find her writing daily at The Daily Grow<\/a> Paula’s blog dedicated to giving daily inspiring, thought provoking and growth motivating messages. Her first book ‘A Freedom of Less’<\/a> is out now. Donating ALL royalties to stopping human trafficking & slavery worldwide.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Although it didn\u2019t feel like it at the time, it was the best thing I\u2019d ever done.<\/p>\n

I found out that having less meant a freedom like no other and here are a few reasons why\u2026. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12163,"featured_media":26047,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[6],"tags":[1919,3676,637,66,4629],"yoast_head":"\n5 Reason Why Having Less Gives You Freedom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Although it didn\u2019t feel like it at the time, it was the best thing I\u2019d ever done. 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