For the longest time, I have always felt I was 19. Why 19? This was the time I left my little home town in Borneo and came over to the capital city of Kuala Lumpur and subsequently to Australia to pursue my tertiary education. The state of mind I was in at that time was pure wonderment. I was an adult but not really an adult. Big city, bright lights. I knew I was pursuing my degree and was still not sure what I wanted to major in. The world felt like my oyster and I was going to find it.
In the 3 years following that, every day was a new learning experience. I decided to pursue a business degree majoring in Marketing enjoying almost all of my subjects I discovered that I excelled in PR and Advertising. And then there was the decision to either join PR and Advertising as a career choice as if my life depended on it not realizing then you could switch careers! That innocence and sense of life’s mysteries fully experienced during that period never really left me.
I have since changed roles working in a PR consultancy to working for one of the largest conglomerates in the world while working part-time as a radio and TV news presenter. At one time, I was also a part-time lecturer. There was so much more I experimented in. Every time I try something new, I visually imagine new neurons being formed.
The learning bug never stopped me. I took up coaching and training courses not with the intent to earn more money but just the fact that I was learning something new every day. This spilled over in the new friends I made through work and running. I finished my full marathon at the very vibrant age of…does it really matter?
Over the last few years, I have dabbled in all sorts of things from swing, belly to pole dancing. I have taken singing and DJ lessons. I’ve just released my fourth book having written my first one only five years ago. Next, I am trying jewelry making & silversmithing because it’s something I feel that’s completely out of my league and it scares and excites me all at the same time. I’ll never know unless I try!
If I had labelled myself by my age, I would have put a lid on myself on so many things. And yes, ageism is real. Someone will put the label on for you as well and you can choose to ignore it. I really don’t feel my biological age. In fact, I think I feel a lot more energetic than I have ever been. No. it’s not to throw caution to the wind. But being ageless for me gives me a constant sense of awe of what else I haven’t seen and done and that to me is living with hope.