Escape the Rat Race. Start Living on Your Terms.
Dare to Escape: Chapter 1
✏️ DARE TO ESCAPE: Break Free from the Rat Race and Create Your Ideal Life
This is CHAPTER 01 of my book project.
Intro: Escape the Rat Race. Start Living on Your Terms.
“No one imagines that a symphony is supposed to improve in quality as it goes along or that the whole object of playing it is to reach the finale. The point of music is discovered in every moment of playing and listening to it. It is the same, I feel, with the greater part of our lives, and if we are unduly absorbed in improving them, we may forget altogether to live them.”
— Alan Watts
Feeling Unfulfilled or Uninspired at Work?
You're not alone if you feel trapped in a job that doesn't inspire you. Many of us feel like we're playing someone else’s game, but there's a path to change.
In 2015, I was in your shoes, waking up every morning to a job that was far from fulfilling...
A Pivotal Coffee Chat
Let me take you back to a sunny winter morning in Sydney on July 4, 2015. Over a honey cappuccino, my housemate Susan and I delved into my dreams. I confessed my goal of leaving my stable office job and starting a business. Ever the realist, Susan challenged how I would support myself during this transition.
I jokingly considered barista work while building my business - a slight nod to my introverted side with extrovert aspirations. Knowing my penchant for big dreams without detailed plans, Susan quipped, “It’s like you need two lives to be happy.” That hit home.
I realised then that I craved both meaning and money from my work.
As I navigated my career crossroads, similar shifts were happening worldwide.
The Rise of the Passion Economy
The world of work is changing rapidly. Traditional roles in business and finance are now often seen as unfulfilling. One study revealed that unfulfilling jobs are a top source of stress for over half of Zillennials (employees aged between 23-28).
Automation looms large, with the World Economic Forum predicting millions of jobs could become obsolete. This uncertainty pushes people globally to look beyond the traditional paycheck from a single income source.
Over one-third of Americans now have side gigs, a trend mirrored in the UK and other countries. It's not just about income; it's about finding purpose in our work.
The "Passion Economy," also called the "Creator Economy," has emerged from these shifts. Lowered barriers to entrepreneurship, the prevalence of remote work, and the viability of making a living as a content creator are key features. In upcoming chapters, you'll meet individuals thriving in this new economy.
Unaffordable housing is a significant global issue in major cities, with data indicating that the situation will likely worsen before it improves. It's compelling many to rethink their career paths and seek more rewarding work-life balances.
The 2019-2020 global pandemic was pivotal in transforming how we work. It forced companies to send employees home, accelerating the adoption of remote work.
This new economy is redefining fulfilment at work. It offers paths that blend income with personal passions, changing what a fulfilling job means.
It’s clear from these trends that we’re dealing with global economic pressures impacting how we live, changing views on what work means to us as individuals, and what might have worked in the past will no longer be the case.
We, as individuals, want lives filled with flexibility, passion, meaning, security, freedom, and fulfilment. Just earning money no longer cuts it for most of us, myself included!
My Road Since That Coffee in 2015
So much has happened in nine years. Here’s a summary of highs and lows. (Note: I’ll expand on these in future chapters)
Highlights:
Coaching Beginnings: 2013 - I ventured into confidence coaching, predominantly aiding women in skill and career development. This experience culminated in a transformative "Warrior Women Mastermind" retreat in Laos in 2015, blending yoga and personal growth for a group from Australia and the USA. We supported rural Laotian children's literacy by donating part of our proceeds to a local non-profit.
Entrepreneurial Shift: 2016 - Transitioned from full-time marketing for a coworking space to starting a productised article-writing service. Within three years, that grew into a content agency with seven freelancers, global clients and working alongside my wife.
Nomadic Life: 2017 - I married my soulmate Cindy in Sydney, and we travelled the globe for 18 months as digital nomads.
New Horizons: July 2022 - Relocated to Danang, Vietnam for 15 months. I enjoyed a cost-effective lifestyle by the beach, with a pool and scooter (at four times less the cost of living in Sydney). I also launched new fractional Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and podcast outreach services in 2023.
Lowlights:
Business Setbacks: Watching our content agency shrink in 2019 due to losing key clients and freelancers.
Covid Impact: 2020 - I had to shut down an education business I was building full-time due to COVID-19. Returned to freelance work as job security vanished.
Burnout Battle: 2022 - After seven years of running my own business, I faced financial, emotional, and mental challenges, leading to entrepreneurial burnout.
The Societal Pressure of "Success"
My early career saw me climbing the corporate ladder, driven by the notion that this was "the thing everybody is doing." This pursuit, widely accepted as the hallmark of success and encouraged by everyone around me, led me to the point of burnout so severe that it culminated in hospitalisation and brain surgery.
(Video courtesy of Channel 10 Australia)
Such a harrowing experience was a wake-up call, profoundly shifting my perspective on success. It forced me to question the societal constructs of achievement and reevaluate what truly mattered.
This period and the experiences shared above brought home the reality that success should be a personal concept, not a societal mandate.
Self-reflection question: Have you ever pursued a path of traditional success to the detriment of your well-being, only to realise it wasn’t true to your personal values?
The Cost of Ignoring Personal Fulfilment
My journey showed me that while pursuing goals is important, neglecting personal well-being and true happiness can lead to many problems.
Burnout from relentless work towards unrealistic expectations leads to exhaustion in all aspects of life.
Poorer mental health, including low mood, anxiety, low self-worth, and constant stress from living out of alignment with your innate passions and talents.
Strained relationships as family and friends who care feel hurt when their imposed expectations lead you to sacrifice your own well-being and dreams.
Lack of fulfilment and meaning. When work becomes just a job, it triggers regret, bitterness, and a hollow emptiness inside despite worldly achievements.
Not realising your creative and financial potential by developing skills and investing time and money in areas that fail to leverage your native genius and intuition.
The cumulative costs across health, wealth, purpose, and connection are profound when conforming to others' expectations while betraying your inner wisdom and needs.
The ultimate price is leading an inauthentic, diminished life. We can avoid these traps by taking time to cultivate self-awareness and aligning actions with internal fulfilment.
This realisation now guides my approach towards balancing personal fulfilment with professional aspirations, ensuring that my work resonates externally and internally.
Self-reflection question: In your pursuit of professional success, have you ever sidelined your personal fulfilment, and how did that impact you?
My Purpose: To guide you to find fulfilling work and create wealth on your terms
In the past 10+ years, I've developed growth strategies for companies that went on to generate millions in revenue. As a marketing manager and project leader, I've led teams and executed campaigns that rapidly expanded startups and enterprises.
If you're looking for an easy process to build 7-figure businesses, this isn't for you.
This book won't promise overnight success, but I'll share gritty, hard-won insights from the entrepreneurial trenches that took me years to learn the hard way - stumbles and all.
I'll also share actionable tips and real-world case studies of people who’ve taken the path less travelled to illuminate the way for you.
You'll gain insights to:
Discover your ideal career aligned with your strengths
Adopt an entrepreneurial mindset to thrive in uncertainty
Create a profitable business (or side hustle) doing what you love
Make a smooth transition to more meaningful work
Build a personal brand, establish credibility, and find your village of supporters and collaborators to help make whatever you do worthwhile.
Set yourself up to thrive in the “Passion” or “Creator” economy.
Incorporate wealth-building principles to ensure financial security and independence, even during uncertain times.
Let us Initiate Your Journey
Are you ready to uncover what makes your heart sing?
First, take a big breath and relax.
I'll walk you through transforming your career and finding fulfilling work step-by-step.
Let's do this! The work you've been dreaming of is closer than you think.
Next week:
Chapter 2: Redefining Work in a Passion Economy
The decline of traditional job security
Rise of the gig and passion economies
Opportunities in the new work landscape
Chapter 2 will drop next Friday, so keep an eye out for it in your inbox.
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👍 3 THINGS THAT CAUGHT MY ATTENTION
1/ Watch: Linkedin is Hell
I love LinkedIn. It’s my fave social media platform right now because it’s the one platform that has directly led to job opportunities, clients and collaborations for me in the past 12 months.
Even then, I’ve got to admit a lot of the content being posted there can be really cringe. This video calls it out and does it in a hilarious way.
By the way, are we connected on Linkedin yet? If not, send me a connect request here (and mention you found me through my newsletter).
2/ Read: Last year, I chose 'Freedom' as my word of the year.
In this insightful post by my friend Ngoc Le, she shares how her understanding of “freedom” changed over the course of 2023.
I've learned that freedom comes in many layers, each with its unique set of responsibilities and trade-offs. At one level, you might find freedom in the absence of a traditional job, but this can also mean financial uncertainty. On another level, a 9-5 job offers financial stability but may limit personal time and flexibility.
I can relate all too well to this dilemma - I find myself frequently torn between the stability of a job with regular pay and the freedom and stress of running my own business.
Where do you sit on this? Let me know.
3/ Listen: Craziest Coincidences (Toni & Ryan podcast)
Over the New Year break, I just needed a good laugh, and I found it with this throwback episode of Toni & Ryan’s podcast.
Some of those “coincidences” are just hilarious!
🔧 TOOL OF THE WEEK
Substack
Anfernee Chansamooth
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