Have you ever told yourself, “I want more in life,” but weren’t sure how to make lasting change? Then thinking about wanting something new and better made you feel frustrated, anxious, hopeless, or all three?
While many of us realize that we have the potential to lead happier lives and experience more professional success, we don’t know where to start. This is often because of what I call the boxed life. In my 25 years of being in business for myself, I’ve helped thousands of people break out of their boxed lives. In this blog post, you’ll learn what a boxed life is.
The first word in “boxed life” is “box.” When you fill a box, you’re confident that what’s inside is protected and will stay put. If you’re like me, when a box falls apart and the contents spill out and go all over the place, you sometimes feel annoyed, angry, or both
The danger of the boxed life is that it sometimes seems very nice. In fact, others may wish they had your boxed life. For instance, let’s say that Greg graduated from college. Right away, he was hired at a company that provided him a good salary. While the job wasn’t exactly what he wanted, he liked the pay. His friends told Greg how lucky he was to find a job during such a tough economy, and his parents were happy with his decision.
A few years later, Greg married, continued to work at the same company, and earned enough money to buy a house and a nice car, cover his bills, and support his growing family.
Monday through Friday, he arrived to work at 9:00 a.m. and left at 6:00 p.m. Once at home, he took care of his family, ate dinner, watched TV, and went to sleep. The next day, he followed the same pattern.
Ten years later, Greg finds himself tired of working at the same job. The daily one-hour commute is stressful. Driving home in rush hour traffic makes him angry. He wants to take a vacation, but realizes that he has to receive permission from his boss first.
Meanwhile, his kids are growing older, and he hardly gets to spend time with them. Also, Greg has always wanted work in another field, but with all his commitments—wife and kids to support, mortgage, bills, and more—he thinks that any big change would be irresponsible.
So as much as Greg is not satisfied and wants more, he finds himself feeling trapped, as if he’s in a box. Unfortunately, he doesn’t know how to get out of his boxed life safely to improve his life. And because life’s okay—not horrible but not great—he sticks to what’s comfortable, staying in that boxed life.
As you can see, breaking out of the boxed life can be very difficult. On the one hand, the boxed life may make you unhappy. At the same time, you have no idea how to change, and you’re fearful of what would happen if you tried. On the other hand, it can be very comfortable. But is being comfortable the same as being happy, fulfilled, and excited to about life everyday?
The first step to making a change is realizing what’s holding you back.
Tags: boxed life
