Just over a year ago, I used to envy those people who hopped off the train in their activewear and sports shoes. I always wondered, “Where are these people going?”
And then, I quit my job. And I became one of those who were gallivanting around town in my activewear. I’m so, so thankful for the love and encouragement that I’ve received from family & friends through this one year, that has kept me on this journey! I started off hoping, but honestly not being very sure about whether I’d still be on this path one year down the road. I’m so happy and proud to mark this one year anniversary of me chasing my dreams and quitting a stable, corporate job and plunging into teaching Pilates full-time, knowing that this is a journey that I would like to continue to pursue.
So how has this one year shaped up?
Well, for starters, it hasn’t all been a bed of roses of course. In fact, I’d probably not gone through so many ups & downs in my life before I embarked on this career path. Even till now, I do question myself constantly on whether I’ve made the right decision. Yet, the past year has been nothing short of interesting (and amazing!).
The most recent “heart attack” in this past year was (no) thanks to the whole Covid-19 situation. But it also kind of prompted me to really reflect on my journey this past year.
When I considered giving up my stable paycheck in this career switch, I never quite anticipated how the contrast would be so scary. I expected to take a pay cut. But while it was encouraging at the start when I started taking more jobs and my pay inched upwards for a couple of months, it plunged again in a month when I went on a vacation and I realised the stark difference of how in this job (compared to one with a regular salary), a holiday meant huge expenditure and no income coming in! There are so many things that you could draw comparison to, and I constantly questioned myself on how sustainable this career was.
On the other hand, I WAS REALLY ENJOYING IT! I loved the energy that I brought to and took away from each class. I loved how I was meeting new people, how students became friends. I loved how I was no longer sitting at a desk every day, working for someone else, but rather each struggle and each challenge I met and battled against was for a career that I was passionate about. I loved how I had the liberty to make things happen, and I discovered creative juices that I never knew I’d possessed. I actually have moments in this career, waking up in the middle of the night, my mind racing with ideas and being too excited to sleep (I have literally never felt that in my corporate job haha, but I think I’m probably the minority in that way. It just meant that I wasn’t very passionate about it).
I’m thankful for family and friends who have continued to be super supportive, and above all, I wouldn’t have been able to do this without God’s grace. This Covid-19 pandemic and the whirlwind of changes that it brought along reminded me how things could spiral out of control so easily, and unexpectedly, and how in such moments, all I could really do was to trust in God. If I questioned whether God wanted me to embark on this career path, this first year has shown me that the answer would be “yes!” because it has taught me to rely on Him. And that is sufficient. This past year has shown me that the journey will not be an easy one, I’ll probably have many more storms to go through, but God is always faithful and He will always carry me through.
So thank you to everyone who has journeyed with me throughout this past year! Whether you were there right from the beginning, or if we just met through my virtual classes during this Covid-19 period, I’m truly blessed by your presence so far. I look forward to growing with each and every one of you, through the next year and beyond 🙂 See you all in class soon!