Run Your Own Race

I have been working on a project that requires me to go back through some of my older posts, and while I am not ashamed to admit that I am very much enjoying this trip down memory lane, there was one post in particular that caught my eye. 

Entitled F*ck the Shoulds (one of these days I will stop swearing), there is so much in there that resonates today. 

In fact, I had three unrelated conversations over the last week that came back to this very topic. 

When I look at my own life I think it is pretty obvious, as a single woman with no kids who started her own business and has a tendency to move every three years, that the big societal milestone shoulds haven’t really influenced my actions. And to be honest, societal pressure has never been a huge factor in my life. 

My parents will tell you that I have always been on my own timeline. Also, this is probably the place where I should give them a shoutout for never really putting pressure on me to do the things I was 'supposed' to do. While I am grateful that I seem to have been born with this semi-rebellious streak and the freedom to choose a different path, I still sometimes fall victim to this line of thinking.

Depending on your life circumstances, I am sure you have your own unique set of shoulds. Whether it is from society, your family, your peers, or even yourself, there can be a great deal of pressure to do certain things and expectations to have life look a particular way.

But at the end of the day, no one else knows what is best for you and what is going to make you the happiest. 

As I mentioned in my post from three years ago, the number one regret of the dying is that they wished they had had the courage to live the life they wanted, instead of living the life that others expected of them. 

It is never too late to choose to live a life that feels true to you and what you want, in ways both big and small.