What shapes your decisions the most? Are you in control? If not, then who is?
More than twenty-five years ago, I thought that I was facing the most crucial decision of my life when I decided to study and pursue a professional career in the private sector and leave my hometown, Gijon, in the northern part of Spain. It felt back then that any decision could not be reversed. Nevertheless, through sleepless nights, life taught me that nothing in your life path is written in stone and that it is possible not only to change direction but also to be in the pilot seat.
Have you thought that some decisions seem easier despite their outcomes being more uncertain? My decision to leave the private sector was not easy, but I was convinced that I needed a change and a life purpose. When I became aware, I discovered that decisions flowed effortlessly, paths opened in front of me, and coincidences emerged.
I went back to school to study public health and international development while working for international organizations in places I never thought I would set foot in: Angola, Mauritania, Guatemala, Mexico, Sri Lanka, Fiji. Working towards improving people’s health in low-income countries became a life passion and gave me the life purpose I was looking for.
As life flowed, I realized that a life purpose can be reached through unexpected ways shaped by circumstances. For example, in Guatemala, I landed myself into storytelling and writing for children and teenagers. From the beginning, my creative writing focused on sharing reflective messages with young readers, drawing on inspiration from the people and places that graced my daily interactions. Storytelling aligned with my life motive too.
Later on, when I moved to Sri Lanka, the time between my consulting jobs made me realize how people around me (friends, family, and co-workers) recognized my innate ability to offer empathy, active listening, and meaningful feedback. In 2022, I embarked further down this path, and later on I certified as a personal and professional coach spurred by a life purpose that seems to have stayed with me the longest: to leave a grain of sand… somewhere, somehow.