Part of the Zenerife team together with Rob & Tom. In 2015 my life was at a crosspoint; I was 31, had a great job, lived in the beautiful city of Amsterdam and had a busy social life. I was satisfied with my life. But still, I had that feeling that there was more to life and I needed to get more out of it.
Hi I am Kim
Part of the Zenerife team together with Rob & Tom. In 2015 my life was at a crosspoint; I was 31, had a great job, lived in the beautiful city of Amsterdam and had a busy social life. I was satisfied with my life. But still, I had that feeling that there was more to life and I needed to get more out of it.
Searching for freedom
A part of me had been longing for more adventure and a more balanced life. One in which I would have time to spend on things that mattered to me too like making good food, being creative with my jewelry, experiment in business and personal development. As well I wanted to be a home or a shelter for friends and family whenever they felt they needed some time off. And I wanted to have a family for whom I could consciously care and love. Together with a deep urge for adventure and the love for exploring new countries, I said yes to project Zenerife!
What happened since?
I became a freelance Marketeer who works 20 hours a week
Got used to the daily uncertainty of not knowing what my income would look like in 3 months (took me a while though)
Learned a new language (Spanish)
Made very big changes in my diet which have increased my energy levels
Gave my first yoga classes
Hosted training courses and retreats as an intuitive life coach and yoga enthusiast
Spend sufficient time on my own personal development through Vipassana, Personal Leadership Program, Personality tests, healing etc.
Spent on average 3 afternoons per week with Tom on the beach
Had over 100 visits of family and friends who I can offer a place to relax and regain energy
Learned that living abroad does mean you feel lonely sometimes
Travelled in a campervan through New Zealand with my family and backpacked through Central America with Tom being 1 year old
Did a 10 day Vipassana meditation retreat while 7 months pregnant to enforce the bonding with my baby
Created Zenerife together with Rob
Were there any downsides to my new way of living? Sure! Worries, feeling lonely but most of all, realizing that you can’t escape your own negative thoughts and fears. Life on a tropical island doesn’t change that. Only I can make that change. How? By trying to accept it and also be open about it. I find that probably the most difficult thing to do in life. But it seems worth it. Life is never 100% happiness, so let’s not pretend it is. To me, Zenerife is also about this other side; the honest and authentic side. We try to be as genuine about our lifestyle change as possible. In order for you to form a realistic image of our lives and figure out if you might find something that inspires you to make a change too.
Zenerife is a project with no end. We will always keep on designing our lives, changing it in the way that soots our needs in that particular time. Zenerife is more than our personal journey. We hope to inspire and activate others to live the lives they want by sharing our experiences and lessons learned. For me that is my higher vision.
Hope to meet you soon!
