English Tutor Dad

I’ve been thinking lately – dangerous I know. I’ve been looking back at my life and the things I’ve remembered the most have been the challenges. Not so much buying things. Sure, the experiences also stand out, but the challenges are the most interesting and rewarding memories.

It’s a bit of an indulgence to write about myself in this way, but I thought it would be interesting to list them out:

• I guess I played a lot of different sports when I was a child and also read a lot of books. Kind of the main themes of my childhood.
• After I left High School, I completed a Diploma in Business. Even though I failed two subjects – I got there in the end.
• Riding motorcycles for two years – without dying.
• Learning to fly gliders and then flying solo for a total of twenty hours – without dying.
• Obtaining my car, motorcycle and truck/trailer licenses. At one stage I wanted to drive trucks for a living.
• I’ve successfully completed at least 20 multi-day hikes over the years. Carrying all the gear I needed in my backpack.
• Living and working in three different countries. New Zealand, England and Australia.
• I have read a large number of books. The non-fiction books have really helped me out in life.
• Working multiple jobs over the years, especially in my twenties, until I found one I was happy with – IT Support.
• Leaving jobs after a short time because they were stressful or didn’t suit me. The challenge was moving on from those setbacks.
• The career change from the banking industry to the IT sector in my early thirties.
• The 15 IT certification exams I passed
• Successfully navigating the corporate world.
• The people I have helped in my working and volunteering life. It can be rewarding working with people but it can also be challenging sometimes (not so much my English students though)
• My long-term focus on personal finance and investing.
• Being married for sixteen years. That’s a big challenge for most people. Perhaps not so much for me as I ‘married up’. (married someone better than myself 🙂 )
• Completing the Camino Frances. An 860km walk across Spain, in three sections, over three years.
• My flying racing drones phase. Learning to fly them and to repair them.
• My four different volunteer roles….so far. Community Support Worker, Data Entry, IT Support, English Tutor.

The challenges haven’t always been success stories. I’ve failed exams, pulled out of walks due to illness or injury, quit jobs after a short amount of time, failed one of my driving tests. But those have been challenges too, to move on from those setbacks.

It’s interesting, most of my challenges haven’t related to my work. Or they haven’t been very memorable. I guess work was always a bit challenging and stressful. I haven’t been that focussed on climbing the career ladder. I’ve been more focused on work / life balance and my interests outside of work.

My working life was more about searching for a job that matched my personality and interests. But then maybe studying long term or working in a job for a long time is really the greatest challenge.

Stay tuned, my next post is about my upcoming 2026 challenges.

Journaling

The obvious journal prompt here is to write about the challenges you have had in your life or comment about them below.

I think I’m going to use this position more once the weather cools down.