How I took one year off of life and reprogrammed my life to get what I wanted, yet to gain what I needed to receive it.

Hi, Everyone. I’m a retired CEO living in New York. In 2021, during a six month solo trip, I realized I was ready to go to the next level in my life, career, and relationships. However, even though I was ready, I felt the need to get prepared. Yes, you read that correctly. I was ready, but I needed to get prepared. We sometimes think just because we are ready that that’s all it takes. You need to prepare yourself for a new level. I love the quote, “New Levels Bring New Challenges.” In other words, the higher you go – the more challenges you’ll face. From reading about my successes, you may be thinking – this girl is prepared. She’s ready. True! I am. Here’s what you should consider when wanting to reach new heights:

Preparation doesn’t mean you’re not ready. Preparation means when its your time, you’ll be ready. You’re preparing for the launch. You’re not creating the opportunity. The opportunity is already there. You’re just waiting for your turn.

https://myekajohnsonblog.wordpress.com/2022/11/14/my-six-month-solo-trip-and-what-it-taught-me/

In other words, it’s like waiting in line to order your favorite coffee drink at Starbucks. You know what you want and you’re going to get, but you have to wait in line to get it. However, it’s there and once you order it – it’ll be created, then handed to you by name.

This isn’t the first time I took a one year break for preparartion. Read my blog post : “I Took A One-Year Break From My Career.”

https://myekajohnsonblog.wordpress.com/2022/11/14/i-took-a-one-year-break-from-my-career/

Here the three main compontents to my one-year break:

#1) Slow Living

Slow living is a lifestyle which encourages a slower approach to aspects of everyday life, involving completing tasks at a leisurely pace.

• I stopped working.
• I focused on important current aspects of my life; health, relationships, finances, goals, career, stability, and mindset.
• I changed my way of thinking to mindfullness. Here, I was able to focus my mind ONLY on my surroundings. This is very beneficial to your happiness. I got to know my new neighbors. I made new friends. I shopped at local businesses. I set up my apartment to feel like home. I wanted to walk in everyday and feel like “I’m home.” I fixed or got fixed the things I had instead of buying new. See “economizing” below.

#2) Economizing

Spend less; reduce one’s expenses.

“I lived poor on purpose.”

• I moved into a micro studio apartment in a New Jersey.

• I only bought necessities. Food, household goods, hygiene products, socks, underwear, bras, and clothes if needed after fixing or getting dry cleaned what I already had.

• I did not travel

#3) Minimalism

A minimalist lifestyle is intentionally living with fewer possessions — focusing only on the ones you need.

• I sold everything I didn’t need or want. This continued the entire year. If I could buy it again, I didn’t need it.

Here are my pros and cons to Slow Living:

Cons:

Boredom; It’ll take time to adjust to the lifestyle. You may experience unsual behavior due to this. This is normal. Just don’t do anything illegal or harmful to others. If you get to that point, it’s caused by underlining issues that were already there. If this is the case, you may want to speak to a therapist and slow living may not be a good idea at the moment.

Pros:

Graditude; I spent the entire year celebrating my success. I celebrated me everyday.

Stay tuned for more……….