Bubbles exist all around us. Maybe its my weird way of categorizing my life, they vary in sizes, but you can kind of feel them. You know how your workplace is a location, a set of characters, has its own lingo, the air is distinct, you have a certain dress code. That is the bubble I’m referring to, can also be called an arc. Hopefully as you’ve grown up, you slowly became multi-dimensional, living in more than one bubble at a time.

I have so many bubbles, some merge into each other, for example some of my friends from gym or training bleed into my personal life bubble. Over time through experiences, good and bad, I started floating outside of these bubbles and observing them from the outside inwards. It’s very good practice to not so much meditate but ponder on your actions in certain environments. Check yourself for things that don’t align with your values or check yourself for people and places where you feel like you are shy of being your authentic self. I think personally, that is such a crucial part of self-building and self-discovery. Understand why you seek validation from certain people, and why some others you do not care about what they think. Toxic work bubbles are especially notorious for poor mental health. But the crazy thing is once you identify it as a bubble, nothing matters anymore. Instantly all the politics, the coworkers, the gossip, the hours, the pay, all vanishes.

When you are in a certain bubble your vision can get cloudy, and you may act uncharacteristically or seem unhinged to someone not within the bubble. Its like holding on to a friendship or relationship that doesn’t serve you long term. Imagine you’re stuck in a room with one door, and in that room, it is just you and a cheerleader, for so long you’re stuck in this room smiling and dancing the days away. You know deep down you’re trapped, but some weird force compels you to stay. Then one day, you wake up, you start moving through the thick air like you’re moving through quicksand, you rush to the door. You open it quickly and run through the lit doorway panting, closing the door swiftly behind you so the cheerleader doesn’t chase you out. Once the door shuts, there is a pit in your stomach but a sudden quiet engulfs your inner mind, the sky is blue, and the terrain ahead is clear and promising. That’s what exiting a bubble feels like.

Never try and fit in or mould yourself relative to your respective bubble. This may resonate with you if you’re in a family bubble that doesn’t support your dreams or has too strict of a culture. You might be in a work bubble that is holding you back from your true potential. Or you’re in a relationship bubble that you’ve invested so much into and feel drained and know deep down it just isn’t right for you. This is your intuition signalling to you that something is wrong, and it is a sign to make a change. So, make that change, as scary as it may sound and as hard as it may be, do it for all those days and nights when all you had was you. My biggest fear in life is not necessarily being stuck, rather it is not reaching my true potential. I want to have the courage to always shun short term pleasures for long term gain. Don’t quit your job after reading this, but definitely start laying the foundations for your freedom, in any endeavour.

All the best

Houssam

1% better every day

Houssam S