This Quote Totally Changed My Outlook on Life

I'm kind of a sucker for a good inspirational quote. Yet another reason to love my Passion Planner, because there is a new quote on every weekly spread! Anyway, I have an entire Pinterest board dedicated to inspirational quotes. I was scrolling mindlessly during my lunch hour when a quote jumped off the screen at me.

"The Grass Is Greener Where You Water It"

It hit me like a ton of bricks. I really don't think a quote or saying has stood out to me so much in my life. I don't know if it just came at the right time or what, but I do know that I needed to hear this.

I always heard growing up "The grass is greener on the other side. I started to fall into this before I graduated college. I wanted to move to the city and work for a huge company and I thought all those things would make me happy. 4 months after graduation I had been rejected from my dream job, in my dream city, and I felt totally stuck. I cried for days. It was the worst. What now?

I had to quit sulking, go to work, and learn to deal with reality. I knew this meant that I would have to wait another year to try again. A year of putting your dreams on hold...nothing hurts worse. But that's what I did.

In 4 months, it will be the anniversary of being rejected from that job. It will be the anniversary of that feeling of failure...and I won't be trying again this year. I spent this year working for a company that respects me, allows me to be creative, and really takes care of its employees. I spent a year developing the blog and working on a passion project! I spent a year with the local junior hockey team, enhancing my skills, and creating awesome memories for fans. I spent a year being able to travel and see my family and spend time with Clayton. This year was amazing and it allowed me to see that all those external things won't make me happy. I also stumbled upon a path that would allow me to grow in my career and still have time to explore and work on my passions.

This isn't where I saw myself after graduation, but the grass is definitely greener where you water it. I made the best of what I thought was the worst situation, and it turns out, I think I might like it more than what I thought I wanted. So what I really want to say after all of this is, stop thinking you HAVE to be in a certain place by a certain time. Stop comparing your journey to someone else. Happiness is a choice and you have to make the decision every single day. No city, no job, and no person can give you what you're searching for! You didn't fail if you tried. And you certainly didn't fail if you changed direction!