Thank You Steemit for Helping Me Start My Life Over and Bootstrap my Startup

It was such a stressful week. But I moved into my new place and got everything taken care of finally! I'm glad that I was able to overcome being such an impatient sucker - patience really is a virtue. I was able to pay some guys to make my life easier and get their jobs done faster. This is a bit impossible sometimes when you are living in paradise, money makes things possible hey! It is hard to do everything on my own especially being a dumb and impatient city girl. I'm a bit tired but happier this time.

Looking back, the landlord in my previous place tried to make me sign a lease agreement which included ridiculous fees we didn't agree upon the first time. I didn't sign it so he evicted me. I almost didn't get my new apartment because there was some guy who wanted to rent the whole lot for business. But hey, I won. Then the internet company was delaying the transfer of my internet connection and I was already past the deadline of my stay in the other place. I don't want to put my 'things to do' on hold anymore. So I called the installation guy directly instead of following up through the office again and again. I paid him to prioritize my request. Three weeks ago, I had so many problems that I was in a state of panic. I tried to keep calm knowing that everything would turn out alright in the end. I got everything resolved one by one.

Last year, I came to this island with no friends, no job, no home - nothing. I was staying in a hostel for a couple of weeks and I had no idea how to start my life over. I looked like a freak to everyone. But I only had one goal in my mind - which is my project. It is the very reason that I'm here and still here. I don't have any financial support, not even moral or emotional support. Even those people I know very well mock my big dreams. Go back to the city, get a proper job. Earn more money again because you won't be able to fund your venture without anything. Everyone's already doing it. It's not gonna work...blah. But there's one thing I've learned in this life - if I really want something, who is going stop me?

I don't even know if my project is going to click or not but who cares? For the first time in my life, I didn't quit on something. I like the idea so I'll probably keep on trying until the end. Last year was probably the loneliest months of my life but good thing I got Feliz (my cat) to ease the pain of isolation. But that is just the path to entrepreneurship - lonely and isolated. Not for the faint-hearted. The price of freedom.

It's actually just me who cares about what I do. I was living in a smaller apartment far from town and I rarely went out to have fun. I was living on the bare minimum. At the beginning, I only had a bed. I couldn't sleep with all the noise - roosters, dogs, vehicles and people. I was crying all the time. I was also suffering from reverse culture shock and travel nostalgia. So to block my desire to travel in order to focus on my goal - I become inactive on Facebook (7 months now). I don't update my status and I don't even look at my newsfeed. I only respond to my few close friends. I learned to despise the travel lifestyle...for the moment. If that's the only way to refocus then I'll do whatever it takes. Mind you, it is really effective. If I had gone back to the city and had gotten a corporate job, I would have probably escaped all that stress again. I would not be here anymore pursuing my goal.

Here in paradise, I could work for long hours for peanuts but even those jobs have an age limit. But then there were really no jobs for me around here. I worked at home but the internet and electricity were failing that I lost my remote job too. I was thinking that there is no way I'm going to put myself into debt in order to fund my project. I'm perfectly fine with - slowly but surely. I'm used to discomfort anyway. I'm used to pain and uncertainties. So the past couple of months were nothing compared to the things I had experienced in life.

My friend messaged me with a solution - Steemit. He said that travel is such a hot category on Steemit and that I could make money. I usually don't believe easily but back then I was desperate. I could not find a job. I lost my remote job. I'm running out of money. It was too ridiculous to even think about my travel startup. So I checked out Steemit out of desperation. My friend knows everything that I had been through on the road so he advised me to write my travel stories. Then I got $300+ for my first articles and I was on the trending page. I sent my friend a message - This is too good to be true! Then I learned how to convert Steem to Bitcoins then to cash. This is real. And I didn't stop there. I studied more about Steem and other cryptocurrencies.

Even though I was earning a lot on Steemit back then, I still maintained my simple lifestyle. Minimizing my expenses and being ultra practical did it. I didn't succumb to this temporary feeling of sadness and intense craving for enjoyment. I learned how to see beyond the moment. I guess that's what it's going to do to you if you have a really strong goal.

Even though I don't have a full-time job, I'm still able to save some money. I don't make it to the trending page now and I'm not popular on Steemit. I don't even have whale friends. It was just due to minimizing my expenses, holding my cryptos and writing for Steemit. Plus the fact that I moved to a rural area where the cost of living is really low, that's really a huge factor.

Now I moved to a slightly bigger apartment. I now have a fast internet connection, a refrigerator, an office desk, and cooking appliances. Those are just some things that I need but I'm still living a minimalist lifestyle. I'm just more comfortable now than before. It's also great that I have a big front yard where I could grow my own food. I'm also planning to buy a bicycle to go around the town. I just want my work to be conducive to this new environment. I tried so hard to make both technology and paradise work together, and it's working! Everything I do is to make myself happy actually. But if it's helping the environment or inspiring other people, then that's just a bonus.

I could concentrate on my project now that the moving to a new place has gotten out of the way. I check that off my new year's resolution or life goals list. Everything has been made possible, thanks to Steemit! And more importantly, to the power of perseverance, patience, and persistence.