Choices and Barbados

My name is Shane Diekman. For the next several years, this blog will provide stream of consciousness snapshots of my new adventure.  This adventure has no boundaries, but at its core is the tropical island of Barbados.

This past summer, at the ripe age of 41, I decided to leave a comfortable life, in a city I love (Atlanta), to explore something new, exciting, and unknown: to live and work overseas.  How I came to this decision point is a long story, but I believe it hinges on a shift in my mindset that said I must make my own happiness.  Like so many people, I was living my life under the assumption that if I worked hard and did a lot of the right things that my life would unfold as I had planned... and that happiness would follow.  I was an active participant in my life, for sure, but I didn't feel like I was its creator.  I also realized that no one else was going to take the time to figure out what was going to make me happy and deliver it to me in a nicely wrapped package.  I needed to define my own happiness and make it a reality. Like many things in life, this is pretty obvious.  And, like many things in life that are obvious to me, it doesn't mean that I necessarily internalized the information and took the necessary actions to make it happen:)  Sometimes it takes more than that. Some times it takes timing.

For me this revelation occurred last January (2012). As I grew more frustrated with aspects of my life, a loved one told me that I have more control in my life that I thought I really did.  She told me "we all have choices."  I countered that by saying that there are certain things I have to do achieve my goals and there were no other options.  But, I kept an open mind and promised myself that I'd work harder on making my own choices, no matter how difficult there were.  Even if it meant starting over.  As I reflected on the things that made me happy, the things that really excited me, I always came back to my enjoyment of traveling, new cultures, and work that made a difference for those most in need.  Along these lines, I started thinking about my how I could do more international work in my position as a behavioral scientist at CDC's Injury Center.  

The same week I had that discussion-- and opened my mind to choices-- a job announcement came across my desk.  It was CDC position for a lead behavioral scientist doing HIV/AIDS prevention work in Barbados. It really got my mind going.  As I read it I remembered that I had a former colleague who was working in the Barbados office.  Now I had a connection and resource.  Suddenly I was very interested.  

Of course, it was a lot to think about.   I had never done international work and I didn't have recent experience in HIV/AIDS.  But as I thought more about it, I got excited.  If a friend has told me they were picking up their bags and moving to Barbados I would have been super happy for them-- and a bit jealous.  Well, here I was with a the potential opportunity to do just that; and work the job described seemed to be very rewarding.   Wasn't that what I was looking for?  When I realized it was, the "choice" was not that hard.   From that day forward, and for the next 8 months, I pursued the dream of getting the job in Barbados. I was going to make my own happiness. 

The path from applying for the position to getting the position wasn't straight.  And it was a little bumpy.   But it was worth it.  In August I was offered the position and gladly accepted it.

As of today, I'm awaiting for my final clearance before I can officially move down to Barbados.   Over the next few weeks I will be posting my thoughts and feelings as I leave one phase of my life and start a new one.

Thanks for reading.