Embracing Vulnerability: Hello Steemit Community!

Embracing Vulnerability

Hello Steemit community! I am stoked to make my first introductory post on the platform, after entertaining the idea for several weeks. I was (and still am) pretty nervous about putting myself out there. I have been raised in an environment in which only results were praised, while effort, inspiration and passion were often overlooked. This fostered a subtle perfectionism within me, which makes it hard to be vulnerable and express myself authentically for the fear of rejection.

Consequently this is exactly what I am going to be doing here on Steemit and through other personal projects that I am currently working on. I am going to express myself authentically, put myself out there as I am, and hopefully make a positive contribution to the Steemit community by inspiring and motivating you guys to live up to your full potential!

“Do the thing you fear to do and keep on doing it... that is the quickest and surest way ever yet discovered to conquer fear.” — Dale Carnegie

So let's get to the actual introduction:

I'm Alex! I am 23 years old, and I was born in Germany, but lived abroad most of my life. For the entirety of my teenage years I lived in Beijing, China until graduating from high school. At that point I decided that I have not yet seen enough of the world, applied for a "work and holiday visa" for Australia, and spent the next year working odd jobs as a gardener, kitchenhand & rickshaw driver, while exploring in Down Under. I tasted the sweet nectar of freedom under the Australian sun and the memory of it has never left me since..

This is me on my lovely ride, working as a rickshaw driver in Australia!

Me tasting the sweet nectar of...umm Marshmallows?

Time flew by and soon the call of duty reached me, even at the other end of the world, and I returned to Germany to start studying at university. First I studied health science, and dropped out after a year, then I frantically tried to set up an online business to free me from the shackle of financial dependence. It failed, and I went back to studying. Now I am studying psychology in a small town in the Netherlands, and I am still looking for a way out.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate education, but I simply feel like I could make much wiser use of my time. The internet offers the most incredible array of free education that I could ever hope for. I can literally create a tailored curriculum for any subject I wish to study online for free, thanks to the help of EdX, Udemy, Coursera et cetera. What I do not appreciate is the (largely) fictional value of a piece of paper, that only certain exclusive private institutions have the right to hand out.

In that sense I am working towards opting out of this centralized system, escaping the rat race and creating fulfillment and purpose in my life. I am planning to do this by first and foremost putting myself out there via various projects that I am currently working on. The biggest one of which is an online coaching service that I am building. I am going to offer coaching in a couple of areas, which I have personally acquired a certain level of expertise in, like plant-based nutrition, skin-health and fitness. The coaching is going to be completely free, and based on the donations coming in from people that I was able to provide value for. I also have an idea for a podcast series, which I am going to upload to Youtube and Dtube, and want to regularly contribute to Steemit.

I am excited to use my resources purposefully and create value through my content, and share it with the world. I am stoked to connect with likeminded individuals and build a strong, supportive network and I am looking forward to the opportunities that may arise from doing so.

What I am going to be writing about:

Anything that inspires me and I feel like the community could benefit from! Could you be a little more specific you ask? Sure! Here are some of the things that interest me the most:

• self-development & realizing purpose
• alternative ways of living
• health & wellbeing
• mindfulness & meditation
• travel, culture & adventure
• introspection & insights
• poetry

That's about it.. If my ideas resonate with you, let me know and let's connect! Thank you for your attention up till here and I hope to see you on one of my next posts soon 😉

And last but not least this is a pic of me now, in my little dorm room in the Netherlands, verifying myself:

If you enjoyed this post, please upvote, comment, follow my blog and/or resteem 💙 🚀