Alysa Liu. The golden girl. The It girl. The two-time Olympic gold medalist. This charismatic athlete is flooding social media with every scroll. Famously known for retiring at age 16 in 2022, coming back to win the 2025 World Championships, and now winning gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Before and after Milan, this young lady has been inspiring many folks, including me.
Funny enough, and thanks to her, I recently decided to quit my job.
Woah! To the person reading this: There is a good reason why I made such a big decision. I believe listening to what Alysa has to offer is a great start to positivity and growth.
Breaks Can Do Wonders
I am an enormous fan of skating myself, and I had been anticipating the 2026 Winter Olympics for quite a while. It was during a class lecture that I was watching the free skate program, and yes, I was crying near the end of the segment. But it wasn’t just because I am a huge fan of the skaters that had just performed, or because this Olympic cycle was coming to a close, but how unique the journey of winning the gold medal was. In an interview with 60 Minutes, Liu had expressed that skating felt more like a responsibility. She got told what to wear, what music to skate to, and even what to eat. It was when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and she took a break from skating. She was relieved and carefree. After the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, she had decided to retire. After a long break, she won the 2025 World Championship and this year the gold medal in Milan.
Why is this important? Well, Alysa Liu is a beautiful demonstration of growth and freedom. We are constantly striving to be the best version of ourselves, but sometimes we get too concerned with the “what ifs,” or sometimes we overwork ourselves to the point we experience burnout without even knowing. In today’s hustle culture, we work so hard to the point we forget to breathe. We push off our hobbies, time for loved ones, our solitude, and passions. Alysa has displayed a clear lesson to me:
I’m in my senior year of college, graduating in two months. After four years as a full-time student, I can say that college is not easy. For four years, I have been balancing my student responsibilities, working, a social life, and my own personal life. I can admit to myself that I do feel pretty burnt out. It took a while to come to terms that juggling so many responsibilities, to the point they feel like jobs, isn’t impressive or improves my life at all. I understood exactly what Alysa meant when she said: “It felt like responsibility.” I put so much on my plate that trying to catch up with my to-do duties or even my hobbies felt overwhelmingly like a job rather than benefiting me. Ultimately, I made the decision to step away from my job to focus on the things that really mattered to me.
Perhaps it’s just the timing; regardless, I resonate with Alysa Liu’s wisdom. It is important to step back and take breaks. We are so hard on ourselves and concerned with results instead of enjoying the journey.
Whatever it is, it’s time to do things our way for ourselves and remember that it is okay to take breaks when needed.