It's now been one year since I quit my job. I had a good job. Made decent money. Had lots of perks. But I was miserable. I had the things the world said you get and you'll be happy.
Now, I'm still deeply in the process of finding my way. The journey, however, continues to reveal itself to me and to surprise me.
The places I get to go and the things I get to do I'll take over the money I made my illusions of success that I'd achieved at the time.
I've been on this sort of on-again, off-again career path for a while. I've had great jobs and left them after going through another revolution in what is a cycle for me, I left there again. Although this time, I did it with integrity & honesty. Straightforwardness & humility.
Nowadays, I spend my time leisurely, intentionally & quietly. A year ago when I left, I'd come up with a list of things I wanted my days to include. And for the most part, they do today.
- leisurely pace
- space for exercise, healthy eating & rest
- more nights spent sleeping outside
- space for volunteerism & availability for friends & family
I get the question often, 'so how do you pay the bills,' to which I usually respond 'I do a bunch of stuff' the details of which people aren't really interested in. If you are, we can talk about that. With today's technology and workforce evolution, there's never been greater opportunities to do things differently.
What I basically tell people is that I write, work remotely in customer service, work with clients on marketing & communications needs and pretty much just do whatever it comes before me. I look for opportunities and am open to things that come my way. I don't strive today. I don't struggle and force. I try to let go of conceptions of what my career is, has been and will become.
I try to focus more on my service and helpfulness to others, simply do the work in front of me, think creatively and lean on faith. Lots of faith.
On the Deschutes
