The answer is not a cabin in the woods
Sailboats are also not the answer
Everyone says to follow your dreams - and you should! But realise as well that it’s not going to be easy.
A while ago, when we were at a low point in life, we almost bought a sailboat.
The idea was that we would sell everything and live on a sailboat, working during the week and sailing on the weekends. Note that neither of us actually knows how to sail.
In the end, our rational mind took over, and we decided not to go ahead with it.
We bought and built a tiny house instead - which is like a sailboat, only slightly less adventurous. However, some would argue that it’s still a somewhat ‘different’ lifestyle.
Our tiny house is situated on an off-grid property. It was a lifelong dream come true.
Follow your dreams, they say
Living off the grid in a tiny house. It may sound odd, but this was something we had been thinking about for literal years, and it was the reason we moved to New Zealand.
This lifestyle isn’t possible in Belgium, so when we moved here ten years ago, our dream was to pursue an off-the-grid lifestyle. However, life got in the way, and we went slightly off track. We lived in several different places. A cool beach house was involved, too, for a moment, but none of it was truly what we wanted.
Off the grid tiny house - that was the dream.
We thought life would drastically improve once we moved off the grid. After all, we had dreamed it up for years, so things should be better once you achieve your dream, right?
Turns out that is not entirely the case
Chasing and working towards your dream is just step 1.
The truth is, the answer was never a cabin in the woods.
You can go as far away as you want, move into a cabin or sail away on a boat. It doesn’t matter, because you will always be there with you.
What I discovered when we finally found our little spot in the woods, far away from everything else, is that it’s a mindset. The change needs to come from within.
If the mindset doesn’t change, then you won’t change either.
I’m still the same person, whether I live on a boat or in a tiny house. I’ve changed my environment more times than I can count. I moved 20,000 km away from home, hoping things would change.
Your environment will not change you - only you can change yourself.
Because here’s the thing: following your dream is hard
There’s this tricky thing about following dreams. It's actually not that easy.
Turns out living in a cabin in the woods is not just the romanticised version of me reading books by the crackling fire.
No, it’s cold, it’s freezing, everything breaks down, there’s never enough solar power to do what you want. Some days, I can’t even charge the laptop, and some days, we can’t turn on the heater. Some days, we wake up to a 6°C bedroom. Some days, the firewood runs out, and you have to go get new wood, even when it's pouring down with rain. Work never stops; there’s always something that needs to be done. You fix one thing and another breaks down.
Chasing your dreams is messy, challenging and tough. There will be days when you think, why am I doing all of this? On our difficult days, we always joke to each other, “I want to be on the grid!”
But that's life, isn't it?
There is no such thing as eternal bliss or a type of happiness that lasts forever. Life inherently has its ups and downs. Thinking that everything will always be perfect once you achieve that dream, will only set you up for disappointment.
Dreams are possible - but it takes hard work and resilience.
Everyone says to follow your dreams - and you should! But realise as well that it’s not going to be easy. And realise that the change needs to come from within you. Nothing else around you will ever change if your mindset doesn't change - no matter your surroundings. People on sailboats can be sad, too. People in tiny off-grid houses get meltdowns, too. People in mansions with Ferraris have burnouts, too.
Some days will be tough, and it may seem like it’s not worth it. But it’s important to keep in mind your long-term plans and your vision and tirelessly work towards it.
And while the freezing winter in an off-grid tiny house may be challenging, I wouldn’t give it up for anything. Because when you accept the difficult times, you also get the romanticised evenings of reading books by the crackling fires. And those moments make it all worthwhile!
Want to keep reading? Here are a few other articles I wrote about chasing your dreams:
The Grass Isn’t Always Greener: 10 Moves in 7 Years and the Quest for Contentment
How we made our off-grid dream a reality
The Best Advice I Can Give You About Turning Adversity into Adventure
Let me know in the comments what big audacious goal you have set for yourself?
Something that inspired me this week:
This week I came across a really interesting book about networking. I found it on
’s publication Steeped in Success.The book is Social Chemistry, by Marissa King and it shows us how to build meaningful relationships. It really transformed how I think about networking. I used to think there was only one right way of networking, and it involved meeting thousands of people and remembering every little fact about them. Turns out, that’s only one way of networking.
I learnt that I’m more of a broker myself, someone who operates in many different social circles and builds bridges between those circles.
Give it a read, it’s so worth it!
This is what you can expect from me every week! A long-form article related to a reflection or life lesson on personal growth and one thing that inspired me this week. If you liked this, don’t keep it to yourself; share it with your friends:
That cabin in the woods was another chapter of personal growth for me. I learned to be by myself for myself. Alone.
We don't grow in our comfort zone.
Today I'm not sure where I will end up.
The only constant in life is change. I found that I think I know what I want, then I get there and ... lol
Life is an adventure and I believe today that stagnation and compromising myself and my believes are the only real detriments to me.
We all have our path.
Thank you!
Well said. Expat here. My wife and I moved countries twice. Whatever we think we’re leaving behind (it’s always self), somehow shows up at the door. Every time.