Do what you love: travelling vs staying put.
So to check in, at Stage Two (as I’m referring to it).
The first month of freelancing has been intense. Riding some emotional highs and lows, getting to know your limits and boundaries while also pushing said limits and boundaries. It’s a confusing and at times overwhelming time.
Yet four weeks later I couldn't be happier to be here. Sat in a chalet in the middle of the Polish mountains, falling asleep at the table typing this, after a very successful first day of skiing. Fully getting involved in all of the different types of work that I want to be involved in. I would never trade this feeling.
Chapter Two: what next?
There are a couple of options open to freelancers at this point: stay based where you are and work close by on your own terms, or completely switch up your lifestyle and work on your own terms. (And maybe at some point a variation of the two).
As I’m sure you have guessed, I picked the latter. This last week has been such a blur that I am slightly surprised I lasted as long as I did on the slopes. From starting the week off in Stockholm to dropping briefly back into London to pack up my room/flat and back to Surrey to stuff it all in the attic and then hopping back off to Stansted for a wonderful ski holiday in Poland.
Many people have mentioned the importance of remembering to enjoy being freelance and, while there is a lot to enjoy in London, I struggled. I couldn’t find a mental happy place at that moment in time.
The come down was very real and physical exercise seems to be the best option to deal with the anxiety that comes with the freedom and uncertainty. Instead of maxing out in a city or in front of a screen, you are focussing on your balance, breathe and the shear beauty of your surroundings.
Which is why, Chapter Two will very much be made up of travel. The simple act of moving around and switching up the surroundings while also working so that my brain has no choice but to focus on moving forward.
Why travel vs staying put?
Between you and I, I didn’t just decide to go freelance overnight - like some assumed. The whole idea behind Han Meets World was to get to this point, where I had complete control over my life. But it felt like the dream began to sink in when I got to 25.
Around that time, it felt like a lot of people around me were in a space where they were beginning to ‘settle down’, buy houses and join the adult world.
Looking at this, I had a ‘serious talk’ with myself, really feeling into what I wanted. Safe to say that all that was really on my mind was to continue to travel. No house yet. No family yet. No following the society order. Which is exactly what brings me to this point.
You do you - and I have nothing against anyone who wants to do the settle down thing - but it’s just not me. For the moment at least.
The idea of waking up in a new town every so often is my idea of heaven right now. Trying new experiences, feeling into new ways of living and being. Honestly I’m lit up just typing this.
I’m so excited!
Like seriously sure, it’s a little daunting to know I may or may not have a definite income coming in for a little while, but what is that compared to being able to make the money when you want and not be restricted to anything?!
What is your biggest dream and what one step could you take towards it today?
Han x
Zakopane, Poland: finishing a week of skiing and feeling on top of the world
