Just yesterday, I got back from my 1st ever lads' trip away.
I had my reservations to say the least.
It was bound to be a recipe for exhaustion & frustration.
I needn't have worried, though.
My feeling is that people-pleasing is one of the most common traits amongst INFP & INFJ personality-types...
1989: born in a suburb in SW (Greater) London2005: sensitive, academic kid. I loved to learn, and I loved the kudos that came from earning top grades from the 2+ hours I diligently spent each night on homework from a young age.2006-07: applying to university, having chosen Math(s), Biology & Chemistry for my A-Levels. Fed up of studying, subjects I found dull, and confused about what I wanted to do with my life2008: dropped out of university2010: dropped out of university – againfell into financial services recruitment2015: quit my City job to study a Masters in Psychology (see below)did a course with Escape the Cityq2016: ran a pilot for a new education programme / alternative to university (Thriva Programme); went to World Domination SummitLate 2016: Masters and Education programme came to an end, felt like a huge failure and had zero idea what to do with my life. Isolated myself, mood worsened, mental state slowly plummeted; diagnosed with depression and anxiety2017-early 2018: took time out for therapy, self-care and some travelMay 2018 – Apr 2019: did a remote sales job for a friend’s mortgage businessIncreasingly knew that I wanted to do my own thing again, but this time not take over the world, and just be a solopreneur/freelancer sustaining myself.March 2019: a week-long trip to Slovenia gave me the clarity I needed to say I wanted to take the plunge and start freelancing as a content writer.April 2019: turned down part-time work with the mortgages company to give this freelance thing a go.May 2019: spent my first proper month (Slovenia didn’t really count) as a ‘digital nomad’, working from a co-living space in Tenerife.June 2019: turned 30, focused on building my freelance writing business, started the INF club, my 4th blog for introverts (previous: A Happier Introvert, The Quarter Life Introvert, IntrovertJedi)August 2019: deciding that freelance writing wasn't for me. Wanting to do a content/marketing-type role for a company. (With some specific criteria)
As I shared earlier this month, I am currently applying for jobs again.
It is during this period that I need to be particularly wary of keeping my idealism in check.
Heart disease and cancer are two of the world's biggest killer diseases right now.
Yet there's another disease that also exists, so pervasive that many of us don't even realise that we have it. Unfulfilled potential.