Keep Going: What Two Difficult Decisions Taught Me About Building a Different Life

When the path forward is hard, there are always two options: keep going, or turn back. Neither is easy. But only one of them leads anywhere new.

If it were easy, everyone would do it. That doesn't make the choice to keep going any simpler, but it does make it worth examining honestly.

There's nothing wrong with needing a pause, or even a moment of doubt, before continuing toward something difficult. What matters more is what happens next: getting back up, and continuing anyway.

A Career Decision

Throughout my career, that same choice showed up more than once. I could have stayed a Mining Engineer, a genuinely good role, and one I respected. But I knew there was more I could do: helping others like me step into more demanding positions, and eventually becoming a General Manager of Mining Technical Services, leading a team of professional and technical people.

Staying would have been comfortable. Going further wasn't. I chose to keep going.

A Mountain in Bali

The second story is more literal. I climbed Mount Agung in Bali with a small group, starting around midnight to reach the summit by sunrise. I'm not an experienced climber, and I wouldn't recommend the climb without one. Some sections were steep enough that I couldn't see what was behind me, and I understood, clearly, that falling was a real risk.

At one point, I considered turning back. But turning back in the dark felt riskier than continuing toward daylight. So I kept going, knowing the way down would be safer once the sun was up.

Why This Still Matters

I'm now doing something entirely different, building something of my own, because I want to help others believe they can change their own path too, regardless of where they start.

I come from a small village in Indonesia. I made my way to Australia, built a career, and I'm now building something new again. It hasn't been easy, and it isn't meant to be. But the pattern has held: keep going, keep practising, and be willing to fail and adjust along the way.

The outcome is rarely visible from the outside until it's already been built. What matters most happens well before anyone is watching.

To start building something of your own, quietly and on your own terms, start here. It's free.