I have always been a hard working, driven person who comes from a family of the same kind of work ethic and perseverance. Sort of the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree type of thing, I suppose.  I grew up in a modern day Horacio Alger “Rags to Riches” world.  It shaped my mindset from an early age.  I didn’t spend much time with my family growing up because they were busy working.  I was left to pick up those same mindsets for myself and my future.  It was the foundation of my esteem…work hard, persevere, and succeed.

As I became an adult, I was in full swing.  I started my own company at the age of 24.  I worked side jobs for income to pay my house payment until the business was generating steady revenue.  I worked long hours and often missed out on social time with friends because I was working or was so tired that I wasn’t fully present during those family and friend get-togethers anyway.

When I got married and had children, I didn’t really slow down.  I just squeezed it all in.  I often felt like I was wearing an invisible Wonder Woman cape or something to keep all the plates spinning.  Working, running a business,raising children, trying to be a good wife,  entertaining, etc.  I didn’t allow any plate to stop spinning in the eyes of the world.  But inside that complex web of responsibility and pressure, I was disappearing slowly.  My identity was shaped more by my labels…wife of successful healthcare practitioner, who was also very driven just like me, physical therapist/owner of a healthcare business, and mother of two. Over time, I simply lost “me”.  I was merely acting out my labels and not developing and evolving “me”.  To spend time and effort to nurture me would be wrong and selfish I told myself.  Sadly, with the loss of “me”, came the greatest loss and failure of my life, the loss of my marriage and family unit.

This event was so devastating and  profound that over the past decade I embarked on an incredible journey of personal evolution and spiritual growth that has been nothing short of amazing.  I read spiritual texts and books, attended classes and workshops, listened to podcasts and prayed and meditated at a whole new level. But you know me and those plates, I kept them spinning to provide for my family and to keep my esteem in check through those patterns of behavior that go way back…working hard, perseverence and pressing for success. Wow, those patterns are strong!

Now in my latest decade of evolution, I am finally taking on the new mindset of simple living and simply living the Bible verse, “Be still and know that I am God.” , consciously.  I recently sold a high maintenance property for a small low maintenance one.  I sold everything in my previous place and only bought the essentials for the new place.  The funny thing is, now that I have less stuff, I feel like I have more awareness, more time, more finances, and more freedom, just to name a few.  But with my personality, (I think you have a clear picture of that by now), this is a slippery slope for me to navigate, as it sort of presents a vacuum in my life.  My first inclination is to keep juggling all those plates.  But that would be the easy choice since that’s what I know so well.  This time, however, I am exploring something different for me… the idea that being still, trusting God and simple living are actually  precious gifts that merge my behaviour patterns with my most true and authentic self.  It is the gift of freedom to have time to think and feel more, time to learn new ideas and interests, time to meet new people and time to develop the “me” that was lost for so many years under the yoke of relentless hard work, perseverence and success at all costs. My new mindset, based on simplicity, is to work smarter, not harder; to make wellness part of each day, not just when I gain a few pounds or  get sick; and to show up in my relationships with God and others, as the real me, not just the business me or mother me, but simply me as light shining into the world through my core values, talents and innermost purposes along with all those inevitable shortcomings.  So far, it’s been incredible.  I feel happy and at peace at a greater level than ever before.  I am noticing so much more around me, be that in nature, in people, in God and surprisingly, in myself.

With that, I really encourage you to take a serious look at your life now. Don’t wait. Are you just throwing more plates in the air to spin because your family or society thinks you should? Don’t make the same mistakes I have. Take action now to “Be still” and simplify your life. I encourage you to be brave and begin to take the necessary steps be it small or large.Your spouse and children will thank you in the long run and your inner self will thank you each and every day for the peace, joy and fulfillment you are expanding into.  Keep me posted on your steps to the simple life.

Traci Vincent