What I Did to Live a More Meaningful Life
Picture this: a busy Vancouver office, my desk crowned with twin monitors, and my calendar playing Tetris. That was me, living the corporate dream... until it wasn't.
Post-retirement, I felt adrift in this vast ocean of "What's next?" Many warned me about the emotional curveballs of early retirement, but no one mentioned the philosophical ones. It didn’t take long before I had an existential crisis.
I went down a path of deconstructing my life. Questioning everything about myself and my current state. But also questioning the meaning of life itself. It turned into the biggest, longest, loneliest, rabbit hole I’ve ever gone down.
I was lost for a little while. I felt untethered. Desperate, even.
If I wasn’t a corporate girlie anymore, who was I? My entire identity was wrapped up in my job. And while I felt like life had lost all its meaning, that exact sentiment simultaneously presented the biggest opportunity to give my life new meaning. That inkling ignited a spark. And curiosity.
You can’t find a better opportunity anywhere than starting at zero.
Hear me out: At zero, the bar is on the floor. There’s only up from there. The smallest effort, gesture or investment is growth. Is progress. Is winning. Literally anything above zero is effectively killing it.
One thing about me is I can sell myself on anything. And that’s how I tricked my brain into believing that I can create any reality I choose. And that crafting my own reality is the biggest, most abundant act of creation. Because I get to fill all the roles. And because I only hire A-players, I hired myself. For all of them. I’m the only narrator, producer, director. The only designer, the only architect. The only boss.
I realized I wasn't just the star of my show; I held the director's megaphone.
But man, navigating this new set was tricky. Although I knew directionally where I wanted to go, I had no idea how to get there or what to do about it. It occurred to me that I needed some new tools. I tossed out the old corporate toolkit and embarked on a mission for the right tools. They showed up in the form of:
Gratitude
Self Care
Intentionally creating community
Contemplative practice
Acts of service
Spiritual exploration
Therapy
Mentors and coaches
And many more.
The MVP though? Daring to step out. Taking action and doing it scared. And then I had to learn how to use these tools.
Brene Brown said: “If you’re going to be brave with your life, you’re going to know failure.“
And she was right.
And Winston Churchill said: “If you’re going through hell, keep going.”
And so I did.
But he also said: “Success isn’t final, failure isn’t fatal, it’s the courage to continue that counts”
.And so I continued.
I wrote these quotes (and many others) on sticky notes and pasted them all over my apartment. I started focusing on the things I’m good at. This helped build my confidence and gave me reassurance that I do have something meaningful to contribute. I went out and bet on myself, collecting evidence along the way that I am who I say I am.
And then I woke up one day and realized that I had pieced together an intentional life that was vital, and one that was worth living.
An epiphany struck: Life isn’t about seeking predefined meaning, but about sculpting it, layer by layer, from the chaotic marble blocks of existence. It’s about the artistry of chiseling away the superfluous, revealing the masterpiece hidden within the mundane. Even though the work is incomplete, by doing it I arrived at a place that felt free. More than just freedom, I had discovered purpose. Not one handed down by society or tradition, but a purpose uniquely mine.
To create value
To create opportunities for ownership
To democratize wealth creation
To build community
And to live a life of service.
Through this process I crafted an intentional, purposeful life. One filled with much, much more freedom, and presence, and promise. And much, much more peace, contentment, abundance, and joy.
And as a result, I now live a life unrestricted.