How head-butting lion cubs launched my business

“You always win everything! You’re so lucky!” my friends and colleagues have often proclaimed.

Their faces tell me that they are genuinely happy for me (and willing to share in any prizes), but then there’s that fleeting look of dismay and disappointment that they didn’t win (and let’s face it, some have been more vocal with that disappointment than others).

The thing is that 99% of the time, they never even entered the competition that I had won. Or any competition for that matter. They were jealous of something that they were never even in the running to win.

Me, on the other hand, I’ve always been an opportunist – even when that meant ringing up the radio station that every school bus played, in order to win the latest Smash Hits CD (*cough, cassette tape). As the Roman philosopher Seneca said,

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity”

I guess that’s why I have a story about, “..that time I won 5 nights in Mauritius, ended up having an epiphany whilst head-butting lion cubs, and then gave up my 6-figure salary when I came back from Africa and started my own business…”

Standard vacay really.

So how did that all happen? Apart from creating the ‘luck’ that allowed me 5 free glorious nights in Mauritius, I inadvertently gave myself three additional gifts by going to Africa.

1. 1. Time
      From 15yo, I had never had a proper break from work, school, and responsibilities. Sure, I had a few beach breaks and other trips, but they were non-stop action and/or not long enough. I had never experienced the true power of time, and more importantly, hadn’t felt as if I had (or needed) the time.Winning 5 nights in Mauritius sparked the thought, “well if I’m already in Mauritius, I might as well go see the rest of Africa…” and before I knew it, I had booked a gorilla trek in Rwanda, volunteering with lion cubs in South Africa, a safari in Kruger National Park, finishing off with my time in the Mauritian sun.

      For the first time ever, I had 5 weeks without the regular distractions of mortgage, family, work, bills, or social media.

   2. Space
      Living by the belief that I didn’t have or need time meant I also hadn’t made space for myself; I hadn’t dedicated myself to really getting to know the real ‘me’.I thought I already knew the answers to who I was, but as I came to realise, I had never paused to think about what I really wanted, or who I really was – because I had always been told who I was and what to think, believe, feel and do.

      I had also been taught that helping others was more important than helping oneself – and because helping others was the only purpose I knew, I held it in the highest regard to put others first, and sacrifice myself.

   3. Perspective
      This one surprised me the most, but it was only made possible by points 1 and 2. And lion cubs.

      You see, lion cubs live a simple life, and therefore when you’re looking after them, it’s easy to focus on what’s most important (even if cutting up their stinky meat, scooping poop, or doing farm work in 40 degree surrounded by flies isn’t fun).

      Distractions are gone,
      The internet is intermittently existent,
      You have dedicated hours for work, rest and play, and
      You play every day. EVERY. DAY.

      (plus OMG the cuteness overload)

So what happened?

Fun, laughter.. and word vomit

Those cubs got to me, in the most fabulous way.

I started to relax, and live with simplicity like they did. I laughed, played card games and drinking games, and went on midnight adventures. I was having… fun! Fun that was so natural, and that had eluded me for so long.  My shoulders relaxed, because I stopped feeling as though I had the weight of the world resting on them. I was part of a community that had a common, positive purpose and was there for a greater good.

Responsibilities? Yes.
Irrelevant/unimportant distractions? No.

I felt alive for the first time in the longest time.

Then came the word vomit.

My gratitude journal blew up with words, words, so many words! My hands literally couldn’t keep up with how fast my brain was word vomiting everywhere. I didn’t even know what it all meant – some notes were just one or two words. 

The return… and the point of no return

It wasn’t until I was home and regaling the stories to one of my dearest friends that I realised the impact of what had happened.

I was telling her all the words and thoughts and dreams that I had put into my gratitude journal when I noticed that she was crying.

I was mortified that I had somehow upset her, but then she looked up at me, smiling.

“Don’t you get it? That was your soul singing”

And finally, I did get it.. and I cried too.

I had been so caught up in living a reactive, passive life, trying to be the person everyone wanted me to be, that it took 5 weeks in Africa with communities that lived through love, joy, gratitude, and simplicity for me to see myself properly for the very first time.

And suddenly I realised what I had been missing –

Love, Simplicity, Connectedness, Impact, Trust, Laughter, Fun

Once I had experienced life like that, there was no turning back…

A new way forward

When I got home, I felt like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole.

I could not unsee or unknow what I had learnt about myself, and I felt suppressed from being my true self.

So I invested in ol’ mate preparation again, and then made some space for opportunity and luck – I quit the rat race and started my own business, Elysian Solutions.

(cue anxiety and astronomical stress levels)

But I persisted, followed my newly found connection to self, and used anchors to continue to keep me grounded and focused on the future – for me, anchors are visible reminders of what I most need to have front of mind… I can’t remember a day when I have taken off my ‘Africa’ bracelet.

More than 3 years later, I have evolved as a person and a business, and I find myself in another renewal phase – once again, I have had to create the time and space to find the perspective that I need for the next year or three. I wasn’t able to go to Africa this time (I know, devastating!), but I created space in other ways – dedicated time with my phone off, no unwanted distractions, and my brain and heart free to tell me what they need to; I gave myself permission to just ‘be’ so I could then ‘create’..

Speaking of, let’s go create some more of that luck… Want help with creating yours? Contact us here.