ON WHYS AND HOWS

I interrupt my London 2015 blogging for today’s thought bubble – it’s okay to break your own plans. I’ve been somewhat caught up with revamping this blog and creating new content (coz I wanted to see the full effect of my new layout, hehe!) that I initially planned to spend the whole day at home. That is until I got a call from my tita asking if I wanted to join them for a quick trip to Landers. Ten minutes later, I happily squeezed in the backseat as we made our way to Balintawak where we had pizza and so much laughter for lunch. Also, I normally don’t like shopping with people but I really enjoyed browsing the aisles with my cousins, Miguel and Nadine. It was a good afternoon 

And with that, the realization I’ve had recently – sometimes we focus too much on the how, that we miss out on opportunities that address our whys. Have you ever been so caught up in chasing a goal? Your blinders are on and you just have to get something done. For the longest time, I’ve wanted to work in an NGO to make a positive difference in other people’s lives. I didn’t see any other way; the UN, for me, was the epitome of my ambition. Every day that I’ve been working for the last 4+ years, there was a voice at the back of my mind doubting how my work was making any impact. It left a feeling of dissatisfaction because I believed I should be out there, doing something meaningful. Nowadays, I realize that what I am doing has meaning. In working together and generating business, we are creating an environment that sustains economies, and importantly, families. It’s even much better than charity because it’s through working that we exercise our human dignity. Human dignity and working wasn’t a concept I fully understood when we were discussing it in Theo, but now it makes sense. There’s pride in working. And it’s funny how taking pride in your work, actually leads to better output which in turn makes you even prouder of it. It’s a cycle that I didn’t take advantage of much earlier. We have to focus on the why, the how is only secondary.

And that leads me back to today and this blog. I want to live out my best possible life. That’s my why. This blog supplements that, my how. But sometimes, there are other hows too, that if we focus too much on our current how, we might miss out on other why opportunities that are already presenting itself to us. I shouldn’t say no to living because I want to document my life. That defeats its very purpose. Besides, taking a break and going out has even pushed me to type up this post,

So don’t be afraid to recalibrate and adjust your plans. Know your why and the how wouldn’t matter.