January 14th, 2025

The desire to live a simpler life

A recent video by Joshua Becker on YouTube had me thinking about something that has been bothering me lately.

If you access X or Instagram, you might have seen it. I think you have certainly seen it. What am I talking about?

Joshua speaks about how the ‘selfish culture of hustle is celebrated’. It’s true. I see this a lot on X (formerly known as Twitter) feed. Do more, be better, get richer, strive for perfection or be more productive. I’ve had enough of it. These messages do not resonate with me.

Working in education means I am working hard each and every day, including weekends. I’m not getting any richer because the education sector doesn’t work like that. You won’t get rich being a teacher. I do it because I want to make a positive impact on the student’s lives and contribute to society.

There was a time, earlier in my career, where I was ambitious and striving to be the best. Ironically, it made me be the worst.

The pursuit of wealth, materialistic goods and ‘success’, it made me poorly, both mentally and physically. At a time when I should have been there for my son and wife, I couldn’t have been less supportive. I called these my darker times.

I have never spoken about this, publicly, but the experience of burnout is why I focus on simplicity and minimalism. Realising my limits and what is important to me was the greatest teaching agent I have experienced.

The person I am today is far greater than the person I was when I was deemed ‘successful’. In the past five years, I have earned a lot less, appeared less ambitious and my career has been idling. However, I am happier than I have ever been. I’m a better person now, and that has put me in a better position to start a new chapter in my life. I have a greater meaning at home and in my career.

This isn’t a post about not following your dreams or striving for what you want. I simply want people to realise there is a cost for each action you take.

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else. — Judy Garland.

For me — earning more, buying expensive items and being ‘busy’ meant I wasn’t present at home. My family were not the centre of my universe. I wanted to be successful to provide for my family, yet I wasn’t there for them when I could apparently provide for them.

I had to get this off my chest before embarking on a new path. Yes. My new job promotion is demanding, but I feel better equipped to find balance this time around. With the right balance, the challenge is exciting, rewarding and I have a home life. The changes mean I have will fewer opportunities to post online. My life will focus on life offline, not endlessly doom-scrolling the latest trends and comparing myself to what I see, glancing down on my screen.