Luke’s moments that changed the way he thought about a ‘career’.

Taking the jump.

It was 2016 and at the ripe age of 21, I was beginning my last semester of my Architecture degree. Prior to this, I studied business for a year and failed two subjects, becoming completely disinterested in anything it had to offer. I was now in my second course and felt an overwhelming sense of pressure as I knew that if I didn’t like this one, then I’d have to have a difficult conversation with my parents explaining that Uni wasn’t for me; this was a conversation I didn’t want to have. I was just about to graduate when I decided to join a competition to win a position into learning to start up my own business. It meant submitting a video though which everyone would be able to see on Facebook, which at the time, I wasn’t aware of. I took the jump and decided to do it anyway, and the reaction on social media from those who were closest to me was a turning point. Even though they thought it was just a bit of fun, for me it was difficult to process as this was something that I was really interested in. I ended up winning the competition and experiencing a new environment with new networks. All of a sudden I knew what I wanted to do, even though I had no idea how to get there.

Learning: Don’t become a victim of the environments we were born into, rather use them as leverage to discover what really drives you from within. Finding your purpose happens when you collaborate with like-minded people, and not necessarily your friends.

Defining success for me.

Shortly after, I went to America in 2018 to live and work in Philadelphia, PA, which was exactly what I needed to break from my Home environment and do something that was just for me. The hardest part though was getting back and being completely void of motivation and direction and wanting answers to how I defined success. I started reading about Special Forces and others who pushed the boundaries of the unknown in some way, shape or form; people that were able to develop an unbreakable mindset by challenging the status quo. A few years later I signed up to the Army thinking I could be one of those people.

Arriving in Canberra at the Duntroon Barracks was like your first day of high school all over. I didn’t know what to expect and I found myself second-guessing my decision to even come here. I remember changing in the toilets with blokes that I’ve never met before and the complete silence and anxiety that filled the air as none of us knew what was to come. I’ll never forget that first night bunking with a complete random in a room that was old, rundown, and felt a little like a prison. I got a minute to call my partner that night to simply tell her that I was safe. Anything more and we would be reprimanded as we began to become isolated from the outside world. Coming from a close family and enjoying my own time, meant that I was really struggling to adapt this new environment. There was no longer the freedom to sit on the edge of my bed and play guitar, read a book or even just go for a walk, as my whole life was now married to the Army.

As the weeks developed into months, that horrible queasiness you feel in the pit of your stomach when you experience change or something uncomfortable started to slowly go away, and I began to love how much I was being challenged and the mates I was making…but there was still this uncertainty at the back of my mind that held me back. It was that entrepreneurial spirit I first experienced back in 2016 that I had completely let go of. I knew the next ten years would be challenging either way, but what did I want that path to look like? The first option was to stay in the Army with clear goals that I could see right in front of me, however that meant losing myself to an identity that was not my own. The second was to leave and embark on my own journey which I was always too scared to do, but this meant constantly confronting failure, uncertainty, and having to slowly piece together the puzzle myself. Ultimately, I chose the second, and it was because I knew that I would never be able to help a single person if I didn’t stay true to who I was and what I valued.

Learning: Be careful what you’re willing to sacrifice in pursuit of challenging and defining who you are, as you may start to realise that ‘success’ can be very lonely if it’s based on how you want other people to see you.

I became aware this year that arming myself with a ‘brand’ and identity was so important, otherwise I’d keep wandering aimlessly in pursuit of trying to find the ‘perfect’ career which I don’t believe exists. If you’re finding yourself on the same merry-go-round of life, continuing to go around in circles and not knowing how to get off, then this is your cue to do something different. Stop focusing on the single outcome or career success path, and instead focus on figuring out who you are and what you want, even if that means moving side-ways instead of forwards. Sometimes the only way to progress is to veer off the path that you think everyone must travel. Yes this is scary, but paving your own path is far better than living someone else’s.