Finally, The First Day Of My New Career

Today marks the official first day of my new career. It’s taken nearly a year to get here after a lot of doubt and uncertainty, but also so much motivation and drive.

You see, a year ago (and for the past year), I was unhappy in my job. In fact I was unhappy in my job even before I really knew it and certainly before I told myself that I needed to start looking for something else. Just 3 months into my new full-time job I wrote in my personal journal:

“I feel unstimulated because my job is not mentally challenging or interesting enough. My brain is turning to mush and I don’t have enough new interesting content in my life to discuss much of anything interesting.”

How awful! I can barely even remember those feelings now that I’ve made so much change in my life over the past year and a half. Life is interesting again. I’m using my brain again. I contemplated graduate school for a few months, but decided against it. I almost took over a family business until I decided it wasn’t my passion. I started a blog and revived my Twitter account. But I was still unhappy in my job and thought about quitting every day for the past year.

When I first began “looking for something else” I was under the impression that it needed to be all or nothing. That I needed to trade one job for another or that I could be just like all those bloggers who quit their full-time gigs out of the blue with no work lined up and shout success: “It was the best thing I ever did!”

Well, I didn’t do that no matter how much I daydreamed of it. Instead I read a book that changed my perspective on all-or-nothing and talked to my career coach about making a real change when the time was right.

The time felt right this month to propose a reduced hours schedule at work. Had the timing been a month earlier or a few months later it probably would never have been approved. But it was and from this day forward I am officially a part-time employee.

Because I waited for the right moment (for both my company and myself) I will now have the flexibility (of time) to focus on new entrepreneurial ventures while continuing to have the financial security of a regular paycheck with benefits. Of course I don’t expect to continue with this situation forever, either. Even though I will only be working 20 hours per week in the office, it’s still 20 hours per week that I’m in an unfulfilling job. I hope that this transition period will better prepare me for ultimately replacing this job with other freelance work or another part-time position that I love.

It may not be completely clear how excited I am about this change. I AM WAY EXCITED! What has taken up the most mental (and physical) anxiety and space in my mind for the past 2 years is now only a sliver, a very small portion of my life.

Watch Out World!