“Love the success while it’s happening, but don’t become too attached to it. Always be appreciative for it, and know that everything changes.” – Roz Savage
(click to tweet)
Roz Savage spent eleven years working in an office cubicle, thinking that success in her field of management consultancy would make her happy. It took all eleven years for her to realize she wasn’t happy, that she was just doing her job so that she could she make money to buy things she didn’t need. She made a change.
Today, Roz is the only woman in the world to have traveled across three oceans—the Atlantic, the Pacific, and the Indian—in a rowboat! Between 2005 and 2011, she spent 520 days at sea in her 23 foot rowboat. She rowed 5 million oar strokes and covered over 15,000 miles of ocean.
On this episode of the James Swanwick Show, I’m talking with Roz about how she went from her office job to spending months alone at sea. It was a huge transition, but one that she chose for herself.
In her own words, Roz tells me, “There’s a lot to be said for having enough naive optimism to get yourself into something, and then too much stubborn pride to get yourself out of it.” Roz says that the best way to mobilize yourself to take a big action is to commit to a vision. For her, the desire to find out who she really is can be a huge driver of this kind of action. And then, once you have your vision, she says, don’t think about how much you don’t know! Jump into action! Start putting one foot in front of the other, and don’t look too far down the road, you’ll get lost.
In this episode, Roz talks more about her habits, the inspiration for her goals, and how she keeps herself motivated. You’ll be inspired by what she has to say about decision making and finding your own vision!
“Whatever it is that you want to do in the world, there’s vulnerability in putting yourself out there, and people are not always going to respect that.” – Roz Savage
(click to tweet)
Bullet Points:
- Roz Savage is the only woman in the world to have ridden across three oceans in a row boat
- She followed the crowd, thinking that success in the field of management consultancy would make her happy, but it didn’t
- Remember that there are more important things in life than other people’s opinions
- When you’re first starting out, you don’t know how much you don’t know. But come up with a plan that gives you just the slightest idea that you know what you’re doing, and begin putting one foot in front of the other
- The motivation to find out who you really could be is a huge driver of action
- Commit to a vision to really mobilize you and help you take massive action
- Jump into action, but once you get going don’t look too far down the road. Take one stroke at a time. Just keep going
- On the other hand, take time to zoom out from your problems, and see the progress that you’re still making in the big picture
- In bad situations, know that everything changes. Eventually, the wind changes in your favor, and vice versa
- Practice gratitude. Psychologists have shown that people who believe that they are lucky tend to attract better outcomes
Roz Savage’s Exercise For Finding Passion:
Imagine writing your own obituary or eulogy. Write two versions: The current one if you died today, and the one that you would want if you were really living your life the way you want to. Not about what you do, but about the kind of person you would be.