Recently I was invited to write about it being ok to have a quarter life crisis. As I’m pretty certain I have one every year (in my head I’m still 25!) I definitely think it’s ok. Writing the article however brought up a few things for me, which I will share here…
Teen Me
When I was a teen and into my early twenties Cosmopolitan magazine was regular read for me. I loved the features and interviews, soaking up the ideas of what it means to be a woman.
As I’ve gotten older I’ve developed more of a love/hate relationship with women’s magazines, conflicted by the body image pressures, the advertising focus and the general sense of materialism held within the pages.
However, when I was invited to share my “five reasons why it’s ok to have a quarter life crisis” for Cosmopolitan, I was all over it! Why?
It’s All Ok.
When I saw the enquiry, the subject matter connected with me immediately. It was empowering and positive. I like that it was about being ok with not being ok. I respected that it was about embracing confusion and change.
Being ok with where you’re at now is a big thing for me.
The more I can let people know that it’s all ok, the better.
This is one of my life missions.
So to share something purposeful I chose to ignore everything I have come to dislike about the glossy magazines, I compromised on my personal values for my global values.
Who am I kidding?
Ok, I can’t deny that I was also all over it because that teen girl is still within me. I couldn’t argue with the shiver of excitement at the thought of being featured in those pages that I had previously devoured!
So here is the link to the full article on Cosmopolitan, featuring my two penneth amongst that of four other coaches.
As I originally wrote five pearls of wisdom and Cosmo only featured two, I have treated you to the full list below. Feel free to share them with anyone you know that is going through a quarter life crisis 🙂
And remember, sometimes it’s ok to compromise on your personal values, especially if it gets you featured in Cosmo darling!!
“5 reasons why it’s OK to have a quarter life crisis”
Whenever you slow down, you speed up.
They say that in nature nothing is rushed yet everything is always accomplished. Up until now you’ve been the bright young thing with something to prove. Except you’ve been so busy proving your worth that you’ve probably forgotten what your worth is. Being busy gets in the way of progress and it’s the toxic companion that sleepwalks you through life. It’s ok to slow down. When you slow down you create space for fresh ideas. When you slow down it’s easier to make clean decisions, so that you get where you truly want to be, faster.
It’s not always right to buy.
You know that your worth isn’t the sum of what you own and you’re also realizing that happiness comes from life experiences. So deep down you know that there is nothing special about owning property. In today’s financial climate we can’t even confidently say that buying a property is more economically sound than renting. So, if you’ve been beating yourself up about not being on the property ladder, stop! Now is the perfect time to start living life imaginatively. Not owning a property offers you freedom, get creative in your choices of how you invest your income and consider what being location independent can offer you.
If there’s no such thing as a job for life, don’t work like there is.
Having a quarter life work crisis can be the magic ingredient in avoiding a career full of resentment and regret. This is the moment you get to do something about it with the least risk. There is no industry or organization that can offer you job security for life, so that means that you don’t have to offer your life to a job you don’t like. Instead, focus on what brings you joy and do that. If you’re unhappy change it up. Ask for what you want in your job, play to your strengths and the financial rewards will follow. Just try it!
You’re closer to you than you’ve ever been.
Yes, it’s true, all that confusion you’re feeling is because you are actually getting closer to knowing who you are and what you want. You’ve had a quarter century at this now, it’s time to trust your instincts. If you feel confused about a situation or a person, generally it means they are not for you and it’s time to get out! At the same time notice when you feel in flow, notice when conversation is energizing and what you are doing or who you are with. Get more of that kind of stuff and those kinds of people in your life. Being more of you will create the relationships that you dream of.
We all get comparisonitis from time to time…
And it’s good to have an eye on the world and who we aspire to, but frankly there aren’t many of us who will be hitting the hottest 30 under 30 list. There is always someone who appears to have the perfect life and relationship, but our perceptions can create unrealistic expectations of ourselves and send us into a spiral. The best you can do in those moments is to be kind to yourself, to learn about yourself and pay attention to how others respond to you. Use your quarter life crisis to create the intention that not only can you be your own example, you can also be who you aspire to be.