1. Costa Rica - Without a doubt, one of the most 'right' things that I've ever done in my life. Committing to leaving unhappiness behind and expanding my personal horizons on a solo adventure in an amazing place. There will be more Costa Rica in my future; it's in my blood. It would take more entries than you'd be willing to read to expand upon all of the things that this decision taught me.
2. Trial and Error - I have a tendency to only try when I'm predominantly sure of an outcome. At least that was my standard operating procedure in the past. In 2012, I made it a point to say "yes" even when it made me nervous and to test drive the unknown.
By no means did I go to extremes, but I explored some of the notions that I've considered in the realm of independent employment. Despite a lot of learnings and some unique experiences (i.e. Hoarders), the love wasn't there. And you know what? I don't regret trying, not a bit.
There were plenty of other trial categories that did stick: eggs, quinoa, yoga. Sure, they don't seem earth-shattering, but to say that I've been picky most of my life is an understatement.
3. Slowing Down - It's no secret to me or anyone that knows me well, I'm very performance and expectation driven. Without realizing it, I can work myself to excess. Unfortunately it's easy for other people to take that as a cue to push you harder. Then I take it up a notch...vicious cycle.
So even after I returned from my international adventure, I forced myself to wait. Pressure mounted almost immediately upon my return - "So, are you applying for jobs yet? What do you want to do?" I knew I wasn't ready, but it took a lot of effort to wait until I was. Ultimately I felt a lot better about my decision, having held out until I was bored of relaxing.
4. Investing in Passion - My trip to Costa Rica was technically an investment. An investment in my happiness and sanity. I could've just quit my job, stayed in Chicago for that month, and saved a little bit. But it wouldn't have had nearly the same effect. My other great investment has been in photography. Yes, the recent acquisition of my dSLR was a monetary investment. But I've also invested a lot of time and effort.
As of today, I've spent 364 days finding photo ops to funnel into this digital channel of communication. Beyond that, I've invested time into researching dSLR cameras and, now that I have one, reading tutorials, tips, and tricks. Part of it could be that I'm stubborn and refused to not follow through. But a larger, and more important, part was realizing that even on the days when I drag my feet and have no motivation - I'm ultimately happy with the result. Even when I know that it's not my best photo, I know that I learned something merely through taking a bad photo.
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If I wanted to drill down to specifics, I'm sure there are many other things that went right. But for the sake of some brevity, I'll stick with the major themes that seemed obvious to me.
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