<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>WIRL Project &#187; life lessons</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.wirlproject.com/tag/life-lessons/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.wirlproject.com</link>
	<description>What It&#039;s Really Like.</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 15 Apr 2026 20:37:27 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en-US</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.37</generator>
	<item>
		<title>WIRL To Leave Life and Find Happiness.</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/wirl-to-leave-life-and-find-happiness/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/wirl-to-leave-life-and-find-happiness/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 26 May 2015 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Danielle Werner]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bali]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dreams]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Europe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fears]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[happiness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[inspiration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[intuition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[life lessons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[manifestation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[meditation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Thailand]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[travel]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=6457</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[What It&#8217;s Really Like To Leave Life and Find Happiness. This is a WIRL I never expected to be sharing. To be honest (isn&#8217;t that the point here), I had no idea that I would be living in Bali, Indonesia. Or that I would truly enjoy writing. Just over a year ago I set myself free. I decided in a single moment that I wanted nothing more in life than to create endless happiness and freedom. I chose to leave a life that most might consider to be great, but to me was just mundane and never enough. After a bad breakup, loosing a home, my dog and a lot of money, I actually felt more free than ever before, despite the fear and sadness inside. I began learning about manifestation as I dedicated much of my time to meditation, yoga and understanding intuition while discovering myself, my true self. Soon, I learned to let those fears become my compass and I became empowered to actually live a life that most dream about. I changed the way I saw everything and everything I saw changed. Listening to my dreams and always looking for more of what would create endless happiness, I started to share out loud about my desire to travel. I wanted to be able to work and travel, anytime I wanted. Without plans, without an end date, without anyone telling what to do or how to do it. I just wanted to go out and explore the world and discover more of myself in the process. And I wanted to go to Asia. Then came the first of many magical manifestations. In one week I received two unimaginable opportunities to make this dream of endless travel come true. First, an invite from my cousin (currently living in Hong Kong) to join her on a yoga retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The resistance of having no money set in, and she quickly brushed it off saying she would cover the fees and I could pay her back by the time the trip came around 6 months later. Perfect! Only three days later, I received a call from a friend saying that Priceline.com had a glitch on their website. I snagged a one way ticket from New York, to Milan, to Prague, to Paris, to Bangkok (yes 5 flights in 1) for $177. And guess what, the flight from New York took off exactly one week after I would return from the first trip! I had no idea how I would make it work, but my intuition said, “YES!” So I listened. With 6 months to prepare, I learned about couchsurfing.com, workaway.info and made a financial plan. I didn&#8217;t make any serious travel plans though. I just went with the flow. (And made sure I was at the right airports at the right time!) In my heart I knew that I could create money and resources that would sustain my travels for as long as it was meant to be. I never bought a plane ticket home. I left on September 23, 2014 and besides the one week in between the trips, I haven&#8217;t been home since. Europe was amazing, but cold in the Fall. I explored Thailand from North to South for an entire month after landing the last leg of the &#8220;glitch&#8221; trip in Bangkok on November 7th. Throughout the entire journey, I continued to discover not just the world around me, but the world inside. As a photographer, I found new freedom in capturing the expressions of other cultures. I started to write about my experiences and share openly about my struggles and the lessons learned all while staying in awe of the fact that I created this. I found my happiness. During all the adventures, inspiration hit in many forms. I started a blog called, Live Wonderful. And I started to fall in love with writing. At first it was just to share my travels. But the blog quickly became much more than that. Now, it is an inspirational place for you to start believing in yourself too and reaching for pure happiness. Everything I write comes from my heart. It’s my real feelings, thoughts processes and the actions I take along this journey we call life. “The best freedom is being yourself.&#8221; My hope is to empower you to let go of past stories that are trapping you into a life you know isn’t want you really want. Discover your true passions and discover the real you. Because as long as you believe in yourself, anything really is possible. Some say that are afraid to travel or afraid to change anything in their life. They feel safe and secure (enough) to just stay the same. But I ask those people, &#8220;Are you truly happy?&#8221; I learned quickly that to find happiness and enjoy every moment, I had to embrace all obsticles and opportunities alike. I had to go with the flow, allow my fears to be recognized but not let them take control. While in Thailand, I discovered another desire within, I wanted to volunteer my time and talents in such a way that would allow me to create a home (away from home) for a little while. I wanted to be able to keep traveling but also have a humble abode to work, create and unpack the backpack for a bit. And by following my intuition, but holding on to no expectations, I booked a one-way flight from Thailand to Bali, Indonesia to begin working as a volunteer to help develop a creative center. Now, 5 months after arriving (and one round trip flight for a VISA run to Singapore), I&#8217;ve done it again. I&#8217;ve created a life I never thought possible, until I made it possible. I believed in the endless possibilities of life, I believed in myself, in my passions and in my intuition. I write to you today from Bali, feeling grateful and still in awe of the magic of life. Someone once told me that the best teacher in life is travel. I believe this is true. It sure has taught me more about the world and who I am in it. But before you can choose travel, you have to choose to believe that you are capable of absolutely anything you want. The real question is, “Do you believe you deserve everything you want?” We all deserve happiness, and I’ll spend the rest of my life exploring the possibilities of that truth. I hope reading this will inspire you to do the same.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.wirlproject.com/wirl-to-leave-life-and-find-happiness/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Justin Timberlake&#8217;s &#8220;I Heart Radio&#8221; Award Acceptance Speech: Advice to Those Who are &#8220;Different&#8221;</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/justin-timberlakes-i-heart-radio-award-acceptance-speech-advice-to-those-who-are-different/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/justin-timberlakes-i-heart-radio-award-acceptance-speech-advice-to-those-who-are-different/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 30 Mar 2015 19:10:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[WIRL Project]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Entertainment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Critics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Critics Don't Count]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Different]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[I Heart Radio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[I Heart Radio Music Awards 2015]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Innovator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Justin Timberlake]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[life lessons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Make a Difference]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Weird]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=4796</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; Your Critics Do Not Count, Their Words Will Fade&#8230;You Won&#8217;t These words came from the ever-so-talented, Justin Timberlake, last night as he accepted the &#8220;Innovator&#8221; Award at the I Heart Radio Music Awards. He has received multiple awards and nominations throughout his career, but it&#8217;s his good heart and personality that everyone really loves. In his acceptance speech, he explains what growing up was really like for him and how people didn&#8217;t always think he was so &#8220;cool&#8221;. Growing up in school, nobody ever called me anything close to an &#8220;innovator&#8221;. They called me &#8220;different&#8221;, they called me &#8220;weird&#8221;, they called me a couple other words that I can&#8217;t say on TV, &#8230; but thankfully, my mother taught me that being different was a good thing; that being different meant you could make a difference.  With WIRL Project, we seek to find like-minded individuals who are willing to share these kind of real, intimate details of their lives with us. So, thanks JT &#8211; we appreciate you telling a small bit of your story. Check it out&#8230;]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.wirlproject.com/justin-timberlakes-i-heart-radio-award-acceptance-speech-advice-to-those-who-are-different/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>My Dad Died 8 Years Ago, But He&#8217;s Still Teaching Me Life Lessons Today</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/my-dad-died-8-years-ago-but-hes-still-teaching-me-life-lessons/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/my-dad-died-8-years-ago-but-hes-still-teaching-me-life-lessons/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 25 Mar 2015 09:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Sara Brennan]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Technology/Web]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work/Money]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Big Dreams]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dad]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Entrepreneur]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lessons Learned]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[life lessons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Small Town]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Visionary]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WIRL Project]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=4564</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Ever since I was little, I wanted to build a business/brand/invention/something&#8230;but I never knew what that &#8220;thing&#8221; was. I&#8217;ve gone down a few paths before, and given some things a shot, but could never quite put my finger on what I was destined to do. Growing up, I always wanted to start a club or group in my neighborhood, but that &#8220;club&#8221; always ended up being me and my neighbor girl (lol) and never really amounted to much. I am from a pretty small town, called Corry, PA, where only about 6,600 people live. My dad was a Metallurgical Engineer and my mom worked in our school system as a Teacher&#8217;s Aide. I had a great childhood and was surrounded by very positive, friendly people (for the most part). But, when it came to choosing a career, I never considered anything too &#8220;outside the box&#8221; because those kinds of jobs didn&#8217;t really exist in Corry, PA. I didn&#8217;t know that you could get paid to re-arrange furniture and decorate someone&#8217;s home! My mom and I did this all the time and I loved it! I didn&#8217;t know that you could video yourself doing something, post it online, and make money from it. And I certainly had no idea how to design a website or build a platform for social sharing&#8230;I didn&#8217;t even know these were viable options! And, to be honest, being involved with computers meant you were quite &#8220;nerdy&#8221;, which was not what I was going for in my teenage years (ohhh, how the tables have turned now, lol). I ended up getting a degree in Biology (not nerdy at all, right?) and then followed that up with a Master&#8217;s in Education. Being a teacher was one of the few career paths I was very familiar with as a kid&#8230;that and being a banker, waiter, doctor, shop worker, and retail associate. After I got out of graduate school and discovered the power of the internet, I realized that I had not even come close to tapping into the big world of opportunity that was out there; I was surely bit by the &#8220;entrepreneurial bug&#8221;. Then it hit me&#8230; my own father had his own international business, run out of our basement, and was an entrepreneur all this time! But, to me (growing up), all that meant was that he traveled and was on his phone/computer a lot. He never called himself an &#8220;entrepreneur&#8221; and I had NO IDEA the sacrifices, challenges, and hardships him and my mom faced to support our family, especially in the early &#8220;risky&#8221; stages that are full of uncertainty. Occasionally he would talk about a successful &#8220;deal&#8221; he&#8217;d won, which usually meant he wanted to celebrate! He&#8217;d treat us to a nice dinner or give my mom and I some money to go shopping ( ), but I never knew the courage and strength he had, because I was simply too young. But now, I&#8217;m super curious and wish I could sit down and talk with him. My dad passed away almost 8 years ago&#8230;I was 22 when he died. I&#8217;m really pissed about the fact that ALS (Lou Gehrig&#8217;s Disease) took him away from me too early&#8230;I had so much to learn from him and didn&#8217;t even know it. My parents did a great job of &#8220;sheltering&#8221; my brother and I from the pressure that owning your own business can bring, especially with all of the international travel and stress that can cause on a family/marriage; we, for the most part, had no idea. But I don&#8217;t want to be &#8220;sheltered&#8221; anymore. I want to know the real hardships, struggles, challenges, and successes (that usually only your family well tell you, but), I have to learn about my father and his journey through a third-person, my mom. She has great stories and information to share with me, but it&#8217;s nothing quite like hearing it from someone who&#8217;s been through it first hand. She often recalls phrases or lessons she learned from him, regarding his business, and passes them down to me&#8230;one of them being &#8220;Don&#8217;t ever burn a bridge&#8221; and I really do take this advice to heart. When I think about it, I get really sad that my dad isn&#8217;t here on Earth with me to see what I&#8217;ve accomplished so far. When I escaped the &#8220;bubble&#8221; of my small town and migrated to the beautiful city of Charlotte, NC, I became even more motivated, driven, and passionate about making something of myself. For me, teaching just didn&#8217;t cut it, however I enjoyed my several years in the classroom&#8230;especially the people and student&#8217;s I worked with. But, as I&#8217;d think about my life, and what it looked like (I have visions&#8230; I know, it&#8217;s weird), but I never envisioned myself being a teacher forever; there had to be something more&#8230;but what was it? As I said before, I&#8217;ve dabbled in a few little &#8220;ventures&#8221; but nothing compares to what I feel for WIRL Project. I can share so much about my life on this platform and people actually care! I can connect people to empowering and inspirational stories that will help them, and I can be myself without using a filter, hashtag, or fake persona&#8230;I can be me. I can get advice and read stories from people who are like-minded and who also want to share their story&#8230;this has always been what I love doing anyway, it makes sense that I am so passionate about it. Recently, I met with a small group of entrepreneurs in Charlotte and one of the guys from our group gave me one of the nicest complements I&#8217;ve ever received&#8230; it solidified everything. He said, &#8220;Sara, you&#8217;re a visionary &#8211; you see things other people can&#8217;t see and have a passion to bring these visions to life. You are going to make something of yourself, and I think WIRL Project could really be &#8220;it&#8221; for you.&#8221; Now, I barely know this guy. He doesn&#8217;t know my story, or that I&#8217;ve been searching for years to figure out what I was meant to do, but when he said this to me, it all made sense. So now, I look back on my life and the lessons I&#8217;ve learned along the way in a different way. I don&#8217;t look back simply to remember, I look back to recall the experiences and lessons I learned from my dad, mom, hometown, school, colleagues, and from work and I&#8217;m still learning everyday. Who says you shouldn&#8217;t look back&#8230;for me, it&#8217;s teaching me invaluable lessons and launching me forward in ways I&#8217;d never thought possible. &#160;]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.wirlproject.com/my-dad-died-8-years-ago-but-hes-still-teaching-me-life-lessons/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>
