Date Published: March 7, 2025
I have spent my life moving forward—always forward. Reinventing, expanding, chasing the next horizon. At first glance, it looks like fearlessness. And maybe it is. But if I dig deeper, I realize that beneath my drive, beneath my constant motion, there has always been something else:
A fear of insignificance. A fear of living a small life.
I have never wanted to just exist. I have wanted my life to mean something. I have wanted my choices to be big, my experiences epic, my love stories worth telling. The idea of settling into a routine suburban life—of waking up every day to the same job, the same streets, the same quiet existence—has always felt like suffocation to me.
I never said it out loud, but here is the truth: I have always been afraid of being forgettable.
And so, I built a life where that couldn’t happen.
The Fear of a Small Life
I have been told that I am restless, that I never sit still, that I am always searching for the next thing. People assume I am running away from something.
They’re wrong.
I am running toward something. Something bigger.
Some people thrive in stability. They find comfort in repetition, in predictability, in knowing exactly what the next five years of their life will look like. They love their quiet routines. Their small joys.
I can’t live that way.
I need to know that at any moment, I could pack up and go. That I could reinvent myself, create something new, step into a world I’ve never seen before. I need to know that I am capable of change, of expansion, of turning my life into something that feels limitless.
Because the alternative—the idea of living a small, stagnant life—terrifies me.
Control vs. the Unknown
There is something exhilarating about stepping into uncertainty. About knowing that I am capable of handling whatever comes next. But if I’m honest, it’s also about control.
When I am moving, when I am creating, when I am choosing the next step before life can choose for me, I am in control.
The unknown is only terrifying when you don’t trust yourself. I have learned to trust myself so completely that uncertainty no longer feels like a threat—it feels like an invitation.
Love as a Test of Worth
I have always believed that love should feel epic. That love should be deep, intense, undeniable.
I also have a pattern.
I am drawn to men who are emotionally unavailable. Men who struggle with vulnerability. Men who keep me at a distance. Not because I don’t want love—but because somewhere deep down, I have believed that love is something you earn.
If I am good enough, he will let me in. If I am valuable enough, he will choose me.
Mark was emotionally distant, and I kept trying to break through his walls. Chris was avoidant, and I kept trying to show him that I was safe.
Every time they didn’t choose me, it scratched at an old wound: If I was truly valuable, wouldn’t they have wanted me?
But that’s not how love works.
The Eternal Search for Something Worth Writing About
I don’t just want a good life.
I want a story.
I have always needed my life to feel big, to feel worth remembering. I don’t fear failure. I fear wasting my potential. I fear looking back at 60 or 70 and realizing that I spent my life doing things that didn’t matter—to me.
This is why I seek intensity. Why I find complete emotional detachment difficult. Why I sometimes hold onto relationships that I know weren’t right.
Because some part of me has always been measuring: Is this big enough? Is this meaningful enough?
But what I’m learning now is that meaning doesn’t come from chaos or intensity.
It comes from presence. From truly living.
The Things I Need to Let Go Of
1. Seeking Significance Through Struggle
I have always believed that things only have value if they were hard-won. That ease is suspect. That deep love must be fought for. But what if that’s not true? What if the most meaningful things in my life could come easily?
2. Chasing Unavailable Men
I see it clearly now. I have spent years proving my worth to men who were never capable of meeting me where I was. Not because they were bad men, but because they were not my people. And if I have to convince someone to be with me, then I am not with the right person.
3. Fear of Stillness
Stillness isn’t stagnation. It’s power.
I have been so afraid that if I stop, I will disappear. But I won’t. I am learning that I don’t have to constantly move to prove that I am alive.
What I Am Choosing Instead
1. Depth Without Struggle
I am done proving my worth. Love does not have to be a battle. If someone wants me in their life, they will show up. If they don’t, I will let them go.
2. Adventure That Isn’t Just External
Yes, I am about to embark on an epic journey through Latin America. But the real journey is happening inside of me. The real challenge is learning how to feel fulfilled even when life is calm.
3. Love as a Choice, Not a Battle
The right man will not make me feel like I have to fight for his attention, for his affection, for his presence. He will be there. He will choose me. And I will finally understand what it means to receive love instead of earning it.
4. Living for the Future, Not Just the Moment
I am not running away. I am building the next chapter of my life. This isn’t just about adventure—it’s about freedom. And freedom, for me, is knowing that I get to create a life that I don’t want to escape from.
The 80/20 Shift: What Actually Matters
The Top 20% That Will Change My Life
- Listening to my instincts faster (I always know when something isn’t right.)
- Embracing my ability to create opportunities (I am never stuck.)
- Protecting my financial independence (It is my greatest asset.)
- Valuing ease and flow in relationships (Love shouldn’t feel like a battle.)
- Learning to trust stillness (My life has meaning, even in quiet moments.)
The Bottom 20% That No Longer Serves Me
- Over-analyzing past relationships (I already know why they ended.)
- Attaching meaning to pain (Struggle is not a requirement for depth.)
- Tying my worth to romance (Love is one part of my life, not the measure of my life.)
- Avoiding stillness because it feels like stagnation (Stillness is strength.)
The Final Truth
I have spent my whole life searching for something big enough to make me feel like I am really living.
But I don’t have to search anymore.
I don’t have to prove my worth.
I don’t have to fight for love.
I just have to be.
And that? That is the greatest freedom of all.

