Surfing is so much more than just a sport. It is a lifestyle. Us surfers dream about waves, no matter if we are asleep or awake. A tiny little baby wave session, steep gnarly monster sets or choppy conditions: the ocean truly sets our heart on fire. Only the expansion in my mind I feel when I look at the horizon, or the inner peace that comes over me when I check out the surf, counting waves and sets, or the stillness and tranquility running through my whole body on my way out into the line-up – this is just a tiny part of what surfing teaches me every day. There are so many life lessons from surfing I’ve learned in the last few years, and today I share the most explicit ones with you.
My connection to surfing
For those who have been reading this blog for a while: You know why I chose the digital nomad lifestyle. For those who don’t know: The first time I laid hand on a surfboard was 2017 in South Africa. I absolutely hated it – I had no balance, no strength and no endurance. But deep down in my core, I knew: This will be a thing. And it turned out, this will be the thing of my life. After, I surfed in Italy, Costa Rica and Mexico. Every time I paddled out I felt it at my very core – I want to learn how to surf, and I want to surf every day. I transformed my business to remote and there you go: Surfing is now a part of my daily routin. Ever since I live in Bali, surfing has become the most consistent part of my life. Every single session teaches me so much, and to be honest, I am totally addicted to the sport. So many lessons I learn on the water can be directly applied to life, and my ability to trust, surrender and to maintain resilient in stressful situations has improved so much ever since this sport is a part of my daily life.
After the last tiny wave session, the girls were talking about all the things the ocean constantly teaches us. Whether you get embarrassingly hammered in the shore break, catch your wave of the day, drop in on someone, suddenly realize a things you’ve been doing wrong the whole time or simply wait 2 hours to finally find the courage to paddle for a big wave – there is a lesson in every single session.
Will I ever live somewhere where there is no surf: Not in this lifetime. Here you have the 5 top life lessons from surfing I learned about life, love and consistency. Because: Surfing means you take what you can get and make the best out of it. Every time I hit the water, I learn another lesson, and most of them are about surrender. In terms of that, it turns out I have a long way to go, but that’s fine. Humility is also a good thing to practice.
5 top life lessons from surfing
- You can’t control tide, swell and currents. You need to work with what you get. Applying that to life: So many things happening around us we can’t control, but we can control our reaction to it.
- The next set of waves will definitely come. Maybe in 5 minutes, perhaps with the next tide, possibly next week. You don’t know when, but you can trust in that it will. Stick around. Even if the ocean looks flat, and even if situations in life look hopeless, the next up is just around the corner. Life comes in sets, and so does the ocean. The question is: Are you going to fight to hold your position in the line-up/ in life or are you going to let the waves carry you back to where you came from? Surfing teaches you to fight, and it teaches you that you are a lot stronger than you think you are.
- Not every wave is meant for you. Neither is every person, every job and every place. You can work towards it, but you can’t force it. When a wave is meant for you, you feel it at your very core. So it is with people, places and missions in life. Patience and trust are the two fundamentals for alignment – doing all the work you can by yourself trusting that all the chances you need, with effort and consistency, will be presented to you. The only thing you need to do then is grab them.
- You need to get hammered to progress. Like in life, surfing is not about the ideal condition. It is about learning how to deal with any condition. In order to do so, you need to face everything that is not ideal. This automatically means that you need to get caught in a current, get bashed in a shore break and eventually have to break boards and leashes to learn about the ocean. Like in life, in surfing you only grow through failure. This helps to accept that this failure is actually not you making mistakes, but you progressing towards a better version of yourself, no matter if we’re talking about the real-life you or the surfer you.
- No one remembers you for your whipe outs, people only remember you for your most glorious waves. Yes, it is embarrassing to crash in the middle of a crowded line-up, but everybody does. The things people going to remember are your most glorious take-offs, turns and nose rides. The more you try, the more you will catch.
Last but not least, one small bonus: The best surfer is the surfer having the most fun. Looking at life, the happiest life is lived by the person who doesn’t take things too serious and simply enjoys the hell out of every single moment.
The flow of the breath, the consistency in any inconsistency, sharp focus of a healthy body and the constant balance in between surrender and action melted together – all those points we find in Yoga, Breathwork, Meditation and Surf. All those life lessons from surfing are integrated into my everyday life, and also influence my teachings. Join us on our women’s circle facilitator training in February in Bali to learn how to facilitate with calm, ease and consistency.
