The Key to Happiness is…
I cycled through smoggy central London to get to work, and when it was too cold or wet I squeezed myself onto the packed train.
That’s just what you have to do when you grow up and get a ‘real job’ right?
I embraced London life. I went to the theatre, to comedy shows, and weird art exhibitions, ate a lot of good food, drank in a lot of pubs and had a great social life.
It wasn’t until 2020 that the pandemic forced me to stop and think. Something I didn't have time for previously, as I kept myself so busy.
I was living my best life…or so I thought.
I’d recently moved into a co-living space in Shepherds Bush and was spending £1,200 a month for this communal style living with a tiny room.
Why?
I didn't realise it at the time, but I was lonely.
At age 33, most of my friends had moved out of London to buy houses in the suburbs and raise families.
I didn’t know I was lonely, because I still had friends and family close by. But I didn’t feel I was part of a community or at least I didn't fit in there any more.
With lockdown rules threatening to close down the communal areas and leave me stirring in a tiny room staring at a train track and building site, I had to do something to prevent the darkness from creeping in.
After some hours spent thinking about what made me happy, I remembered being blissfully happy when I went to a surf camp in North Spain the year before.
Surfing made me happy.
So I moved to the coast, 5 hours drive away, without knowing anyone down there and thanks to meeting one beautiful soul, Beth, and being in the water most days struggling to catch a wave, I was saved from spiralling into depression.
This is us in November 2020 freezing cold, but blissfully happy post-surf in Newquay, UK.
You can’t wait for something (or someone) to come along and make you happier- you need to take action in designing a life that make YOU happy.
If you want to make a change in your life in 2024 and have more freedom- join me and a small group of others for the one and only Remote Rebellion Retreat of 2024!
Stay Rebellious,
Michelle