Making Lemonade: It's Never Too Late to Create a Life You Love

Working in a demanding advertising agency, Michelle Pfennighaus was one among millions who was laid off in the economic downturn. She learned firsthand that when life hands you lemons, you really can make lemonade. Michelle is featured in the documentary film, Lemonade, where she talks candidly about how she reinvented her life post-pink slip. Using yoga as an outlet for stress led Michelle to pay more attention to the foods she was eating. As she started to look and feel better, she discovered a passion for nutrition and started studying at Integrative Nutrition. Now as a certified health coach and yoga instructor, Michelle feels better than ever doing work she loves and helping others to improve their health.

Similar to Michelle, many people have discovered their true passion after getting laid off and re-assessing their priorities. Just last month, another 36,000 Americans lost their jobs. Realizing they are overworked and unfulfilled, many people have seen this economy as an opportunity for change and a chance to pursue their passions. But you don't have to get a pink slip to start reinventing you life!

When you work at a job that is draining, stressful, or uninspiring, you end up looking for fulfillment in other ways. In a culture that values instant gratification, we look to the "quick fix" and spend little time evaluating the consequences. Perhaps you turn to excessive smoking, drinking or eating unhealthy food. Life quickly becomes unbalanced and difficult. Trying to manage stress in unhealthy ways keeps you stuck, spending years doing work that you may be completely opposed to. Finding work you love is essential to living a healthy, balanced life.

The average person spends many waking hours working, trying to pay the bills. We all feel the pressure to keep up, but rarely do we step back and look at how the pressures affects our lives; the compromises that we make to our relationships, health and well being. How many of you enjoy your work? Most people complain constantly and feel powerless to change it. If you are like the people I've met in my practice, you dread Monday morning, and work for the weekend -- over and over, week after week, year after year. You don't realize the extent your life would improve if you were doing work you loved.

Too many people don't understand their ability to walk away from a job and start a new one. The job market today is fast moving and flexible; people have 3 or 4 careers in a lifetime.
Everyone has the power to reinvent their career, work for different companies, or be their own boss, and find a job that is fulfilling. Some people make this choice themselves when they feel the negative effects on their health, and some people are forced to reexamine their career path when they personally feel the effects of an economic meltdown.

We've seen many people end up at Integrative Nutrition because they decided to follow their passion in health and wellness.

Ready to find your passion? You can start by trying these exercises:

Find Work you Love

Think about it. You spend 8-10 hours a day, 5 days a week at work. That adds up! You probably spend more time with your coworkers than with anyone else in your life. Are you passionate about your job and do you love the people you work with? If not, chances are that takes a toll on your health.

Think about your current job and what would have to change to make you love it. Is it the salary, your boss or coworkers, the schedule, or is it what you actually do all day, that needs to change? Find what is not working at your current job and see if you can fix it. You may just need to ask to get the changes you need!

If Money Didn't Matter

If you decided right now that you had enough money and that you would always have enough, what would you do with your life? Write at least 5 imaginary lives.

Think about the following:

• What kind of work do you love?
• Who would be part of your life?
• Where would you live?

We often equate work with money; this is just part of it. Work can be a meaningful, rewarding experience every day. To have a fulfilling career that nourishes you, find work that you feel passionate about. Haven't found your passion yet? That's ok, it's fun figuring that part out too. Try joining a new club, volunteering and exploring new interests. Look at what you already do and enjoy. Are you an avid collector? Maybe an antique shop is in your future. Do you love working out and showing others how? Or do you have culinary talents that wow your dinner guests? The possibilities for a new future are endless.

Do you feel stuck in a job you aren't happy at? There is no right or wrong answer, you just need to explore options for yourself and find what works for you. Have you taken advantage of an opportunity to reinvent your life? Please tell us your "lemonade" story in the comments. You never know who you may inspire.

Joshua Rosenthal is the founder of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, the largest nutrition school in the world. Visit the site for a free "14 Days to a Healthier You" coaching program.

 

 

 

Follow Joshua Rosenthal on Twitter: www.twitter.com/NutritionSchool

Comments

[Toni Bernhard]

12:21 AM on 04/02/2010

I had to reinvent my life when I unexpected­ly became ill nine years ago. The doctors initially thought it was an acute viral infection, but I never recovered. It took me many years to get over the shock of having to give up my beloved career as a teacher, not to mention the shock of going from a life that was full of other people to one of relative isolation.

When I gradually came to accept that this was the life I'd been given, I started to think about how I could make lemonade out of this lemon of an illness. And so I wrote a book about living well with chronic illness. I found a publisher and the book will be out in September.

When I first got sick, I never imagined that something so wonderful could come of the unexpected turn my life took, wonderful not just because I feel a sense of accomplish­ment but because I think the book can help a lot of people.

So, hang in there those of you who are struggling­. Keep searching. Don't give up.

Toni Bernhard
www.howtob­esick.com

[BarbaraSinclair]

01:05 PM on 03/31/2010

Joshua Rosenthal and the Institute for Integrativ­e Nutrition are magical at helping people move forward and change their lives. I always say that I think they were pumping confidence into the air when I attended the program last year. I felt like a baby bird being gently pushed out of the nest (I was only 55 at the time!), equipped with all the tools I needed to live a new and exciting life but with a supportive "parent" watching over and guiding me.

Michelle Pfennighau­s, by the way, is the perfect example for Joshua to use. What she has accomplish­ed in less than a year's time is mind-blowi­ng and an inspiratio­n to all of us.

[AuntieM57]

10:50 AM on 03/31/2010

Most people get so caught up in the accumulati­on of "stuff" they forget how expensive it will be to maintain all their "stuff" and find one day they have purchased larger and larger homes just to contain all their "stuff" which costs them more in maintenanc­e (utilities­, lawn care, taxes) so all the pay raises they've gotten get them only a bigger house with more "stuff". Then they have more kids than they should so the costs grow exponentia­lly (cell phones, designer clothes, college) out of control. When they finally get the kids out of the nest (should they be so lucky) they look around and decide they need to "downsize" and so they get rid of half or more of their "stuff" and move into a condo. Meanwhile the kids they raised to want "stuff" are out there buying....­stuff. Does anyone seriously look at their life while they are living it?

[Exene]

02:25 PM on 03/30/2010

This reminds me of the old Steve Martin routine about how to have a million dollars and never pay taxes: First, get a million dollars. . . .

[JM35]

09:51 PM on 03/30/2010

Right? Some people seem to think it's so simple....

[AuntieM57]

10:54 AM on 03/31/2010

Here's an alternativ­e if you are just starting out - don’t buy so much stuff! Wait until you have built a nest to have a child. Have only one child or, better yet, no child if you have to farm out the care (too many kids not raised by parents!) Live in a small home near where you work or rent to be more mobile. Don't buy all the new toys available - you don't need toys you are grown up! Spend your free time on further education, perhaps something you'd like to work into your next career - you can take on-line courses to do this easily! Cook at home rather than eating out, pack a healthy lunch every day, drink water instead of sodas, take walks, read more, talk to your neighbors. And save some money so if you really hate your job you have savings to carry you through a career change!
It really is "simple" , it just takes planning and common sense and the will to not follow the crowd.