Letting go

It is always the letting go – the leap of faith – that takes us on the paths of learning and adventure. Yet most people prefer to stick to what is safe and predictable. That’s not wrong, but it somehow is a lost opportunity. Life is very short and discovering our potential, and the variety of experiences life has to offer, is to me the true purpose of our lives. That is why we must take care not to get too stuck – in beliefs, institutions, or jobs.

I’m not saying letting go – taking risks – is always easy, or without those knocks and bruises. But it is almost invariably more interesting and rewarding. I spent 4 years at university studying Marketing, only to let it go the minute I finished my degree. My first proper job was as a Strategy Analyst, which gave me a great foundation in business, but I let it go after only 18 months, so that I could pursue my growing passion for environmental issues. I had an extremely promising career at a global company (KPMG) after I specialised in social and environmental responsibility, but I let it go after 6 years, to pursue my dream of doing a PhD. Later, I had a high prestige job at Cambridge University, but I let it go to take a year out to travel around the world and re-learn what was going on at ground level in my areas of interest.