Defining moments…

Each of us has had defining moments in the course of our lives, where a single decision has changed the entire trajectory of our lives.

If we were to look at these unique moments and the decisions made in their totality it tells us a lot about who we are.

It wouldn’t take you long to realize that I’m an adventurer at heart, and so if there is a decision to be made I will often choose the path less travelled…

Over the course of my life this approach has gotten me into, and out of some tight spots, in addition it’s enable me to live a unique and different type of life.

I seem to thrive on and seek out adventures wherever possible.

Often, these adventures come with a defining moment that depending on the path you choose may have a lasting and profound impact on your life.

As an example, quitting my perfectly good teaching job back in the day to buy a one way ticket around the world so that I could experience all the things I’d dreamed about during my childhood.

In retrospect that doesn’t sound like a good idea, nor advice you might give to your kids but there you have it.

This most defining moment led me to follow my heart and move to Canada, have a family, and raise two incredible children (now adults) and make a life in Toronto for 32 years.

That single decision to quit my job came as an errant thought on my way to school one day.  Deep down I knew I wasn’t happy teaching high school, as it wasn’t my passion.

I needed a change, but a wave of “you have to quit your job and travel” was so powerful that I was compelled to resign that very day.

This was the catalyst or defining moment for a complete and total change in the trajectory of my life.

From the moment I quit I began a new life…

It’s easy now to look back all those years ago and say that I made the right decision but like with my decisions all that was ahead of me was the unknown.

Sure, full of possibilities and choices and as I’d like to say, “I had the world at my feet”.

Another defining moment occurred soon after my dad passed away back in 2011.

It was a time of turmoil as I’d commuting back and forth to Australia during his six-month illness, my marriage was in tatters and the constant level of travel for my job were all taking a significant toll.

After returning to Toronto, I asked for a local posting where I could spend more time with my family and settle into a routine where I wasn’t on a plane every week.

There were many forms of grief going through my mind – grieving my dad’s passing, and although not knowing at the time also grieving the end of my marriage – I was emotionally adrift…

Everything came to a head pretty quickly.

My employer said that my job as a management consultant was where I was needed and there was no need locally, so I had a choice to make.

Now with the ending of my marriage proper I was going to have my kids half time which made the decision for me in terms of my career.

Ultimately it was an easy decision to leave and start afresh.

This defining moment enable me to develop and create Indelible Adventures.

From that moment forth everything changed.

This decision allowed me to take control of my destiny, even though there wasn’t a safety net or guarantee that I could support myself.

With a growing confidence and self-belief, I flourished.

This defining moment enabled me to bring more creativity into my life, broaden my skills and take control of my destiny.

Since then, I’ve travelled the world with my kids, experienced many countries and cultures that have broadened my knowledge and understanding of the world.

I suppose the last major defining moment was soon after the pandemic began.

Everyone was working at home, few people venturing out, both Zach and Sam away at university and me stuck at home on a series of never-ending conference calls.

Like many of us I was at my wits end…

As the winter turned to spring, then summer I decided to have the conversation with Z+S about moving back to Australia.

I knew I couldn’t take another long, cold Canadian winter being isolated…

I’d had the conversation with them the prior year and neither were supportive of me moving back, as both expressed the need for me to remain close by.

I understood, but decided to have the conversation one more time…

Surprisingly, both of them were supportive and collectively we began looking for a house to buy in Australia.

The most important thing was that it had to be in a year-round sunny climate – South East Queensland became our focus with enough bedrooms for all of us plus our new house had to have a pool.

Before you knew it, we had found our dream home, put in a bid which was accepted and the rest is now history.

Some decisions will only have a minimal impact, while others, some that we think at the time are inconsequential have a major and lasting impact that reaches far into our lives.

Until next week

Ciao!