It’s strange when you realise you actually have everything you were working for. I would say everything you wanted, but we know that the moment you get what you want, you start wanting something else or something more. Shopenhauer was right about that. He wasn’t right about the fact that we live in misery all the time, but the fact that we spend our lives striving for things we don’t have, achieve or attain them and then want something different – that he was right about.
Everything you worked for. Years worth of effort. Hundreds of hours of study, months of work experience, a decent amount of euphoria when things go well and doubts when they don’t. It’s a strange concept, maybe because you get so used to working towards something, being in the wrong place and wanting to be somewhere else, but to finally be where you were aiming to get to – that’s strange.
And it’s strange that it takes some adjusting to. You would think that once you’d got to this wonderful place that you’d spent so long dreaming about that everything would fall into place and you’d realise, yep, you’re home. But it’s not like that. There are still anxieties and concerns, things that fit and things that don’t and you still wonder, is this right? Have I worked myself to the right place?
But then eventually, eventually, it sinks in. I am there. I have made it.
And then the journey really begins. Still standing at the bottom of the ladder, but at last the ladder is leaning against the right wall. This is the exciting bit, where you can throw your heart and soul into it and see where the ladder takes you – how high up does it go and what tangents will spark off from it. Maybe a ladder isn’t the greatest analogy. Maybe it’s more like a tree – lots of limbs to climb out on. Either way, it’s a really cool place to be and I would recommend anyone to try it. Be brave, get out there and take your opportunities even though it’s scary. Make your life happen the way you want to. It’s the only one you’re going to get, after all.
