One of the biggest a-ha moments for me along my path to business growth was to not try and be someone who I was not.

Be me.
Be genuine.

Anything else is just far too exhausting. It leads to introvert burnout. Yes that’s a thing and yes I have been there.

I was a chameleon for years, swaying with the culture changes and trying to fit in and succeeding to those who met me. Many thought I was extroverted as I pushed myself to head out to meet people, as otherwise loneliness would kick in.

As introverted people need friends too. And when you move to a new country that takes a lot of effort as ever already has their set friendships from years ago.

Not many people are welcoming in a consistent way, so I learnt to create strategies to combat this.

It was tough. Highs and lows were in there.

But at the end of it all, after 15 years of being someone I was not 100% I was burnt out.

Tears would bubble up when alone for what seemed like no reason. I just wanted to stay in bed all day. Getting out the front door to meet people was hard. 

#introvertburnout hit.

It's real and it happens when you have tried for too long to be someone you are not.