Academics prepared me for a career; life taught me to seek purpose. This is the story of how both led me to Wolf Academy.

People often say to me, “it's funny how you're trying to help transform education because you're one of the ones that actually did well in school”.

And this is true. Back in secondary school I was quite academic, particularly excelling in the areas of business and maths. And after graduating I went on to study in Ireland's top university, Trinity College Dublin in one of it's most sought after degrees, Management Science and Information System Studies.

But in this short story I'm going to show you why academic ability alone does not constitute success and how I went from winning awards while working in one of the world's leading IT firms to sleeping on a park bench in Canada three years later.

I could write a book on my life experiences (and I'm currently working on it) but if I want to get to the heart of my own particular issues growing up it was that I never felt like I was good enough. Good enough at what you may ask? Or good enough for whom? While I'm now aware of some childhood events that likely contributed to this belief, these are still questions I ask myself today.

Many of us grow up with beliefs similar to this. And while it's not about blaming specific people or the events that caused them, it's important to recognise what beliefs we have and how they are driving our behaviour. For me, this feeling of not being enough or not being loveable as I am led me to always seek validation in external achievements. And while this drive for external achievement can reap some good external results, it often leaves a person feeling empty or unfulfilled on the inside. This is because most internal problems require an internal solution.

So for me, when I finally did land that great IT job that I'd been working hard for years towards, I felt a hit of momentary happiness having achieved my goal. But after just a few weeks this feeling was quickly replaced by the old feeling of lack and unfulfillment. And now I was stuck in a job I didn't even like, one I only aimed for because I was good at these subjects in school and people told me I'd be wealthy and successful here.

I got on with the job and despite not liking it, the pay and the perks were good and there were plenty of other young people working there who I could hang out with. But after 2 and a half years the toll it was putting on me started becoming too much, I was becoming more depressed in work and I could feel I was drifting further away from the person I wanted to be. So I eventually plucked up the courage to quit, despite not knowing what my next move was going to be. I just knew I needed time away to get to know myself more and the path would surely unfold. So I headed off to Canada for two years, giving myself the time and space I needed to go on a journey of self discovery.

While I always looked after myself physically, through exercising and eating well, during my time in Canada, I got deep into the practices of meditation and journaling. For me, these practices were a way of understanding myself more, connecting with my heart and separating thoughts of the fearful monkey mind with those coming from a deeper place of authenticity within myself.

I also tried out loads of different jobs during my time there. From working as a barman to a bouncer, from working in construction to ebook writing - I tried a broad spectrum! And I learned many valuable skills in all of these roles and what I liked and didn't like about each of them. But despite learning loads and having amazing experiences during my time there, I still didn't know exactly what I wanted to do with my future career and my time away was running out.

So in August 2019, I decided to go on a solo 1800km cycle from Montréal to the east coast of Canada. I wanted to give myself enough alone time to listen to my intuition so I could discover my true purpose and what I was meant to do upon returning to Ireland.

Three weeks into my cycle I found myself taking a well-earned rest on a park bench in the beautiful Prince Edward Island. I sat on that bench for about 5 hours, gazing out at the lake in front of me. I was waiting for darkness to fall, knowing the park-goers would then start heading back to their cosy houses, giving me the opportunity to pull out my sleeping bag for the night. I was wearing my old Trinity top, which I had masterfully sprinkled with white paint from the numerous walls I had rolled back in Montreal. Between the dirty clothes and the plastic bags of food tied to my bike, I felt I had the look of what people would normally associate with someone who is experiencing homelessness (and I suppose at the time I technically was).

I noticed most people wouldn’t say hello or make eye contact with me and I felt myself overcompensating by putting on extra big smiles and hellos to try and make myself look friendly and normal (in reality it probably made me seem more sceptical). I felt I was being judged for my appearance and I experienced some sadness and loneliness in feeling I was being looked at by people as if I was somehow less than them. And I’m well aware that this could’ve been solely my interpretation of things but nonetheless, it made me see myself as a nobody in their eyes.

But this feeling of being seen as a nobody, invoked in me not only a sense of sadness but also a strange sense of liberation. It allowed me to embrace that ‘who cares what they think’ attitude. Being a nobody here meant I didn’t have any expectations on me and I had the freedom to do what I really wanted to do.

Darkness eventually came and with this renewed sense of freedom in mind, I tucked into my sleeping bag and I drifted off into a deep sleep. Then suddenly at 5am, I awoke with a clear idea of what I could give to the world upon my return home to Ireland. I sat back up on the bench and took out a journal and pen.

I came to the realisation that the best way to help the planet and the majority of the people who are suffering in the world was to transform education. And on that bench at 5am I began writing a vision for what would become Wolf Academy.

I wanted to give young people who were struggling in life the opportunity to see their own potential and to help them understand that they have the strength to overcome any of their challenges. And when I returned to Ireland I set up Wolf Academy with the help of my brother Daryl. Our aim was to not only inspire young people to believe in themselves but also to empower them with the tools they needed to grow in all areas of their lives.

I felt deep sadness whenever I would hear of another youth suicide in Ireland and I wanted the act of taking your own life to become as uncommon and irrational as setting fire to a million euros. Because I knew that if people could get a glimpse at how truly beautiful and amazing life can be, they would feel the strong desire to stay despite the pain they are going through.

When we started our journey with Wolf Academy back in March 2020, we were giving talks in schools about the importance of expressing your emotions and having a clear vision for your future. We shared our own personal struggles to connect with teenagers, speaking about issues with lack of confidence growing up, emotional suppression, lack of purpose, distraction etc. This raw and honest approach seemed to have a huge positive impact on teenagers as they could often relate to our stories with many of their own struggles. This engaged them enough to want to learn the techniques we then shared that could help them connect with themselves more and overcome their own challenges.

Since starting Wolf Academy we have developed 8 online programs for teenagers and we have also created workshops for parents, teachers and school leaders as well as students in primary schools. Our work is continuing to grow and we are continuing to learn and bring the best, most up-to-date tools to help people reconnect to themselves, reach their potential and find more inner resilience, peace and clarity in their lives.

Written by Cormac Noonan, Co-Founder of Wolf Academy