I can’t believe it, but I’m already into my THIRD week of being happily “unemployed”. I’ve been able to take care of my little man (aka #thadman), work out almost every day, clean my house the way I want it cleaned, cook almost every night, tend to my garden and generally be HAPPY.
I won’t go into all the reasons why I quit my job right now (and maybe not ever), but don’t think I didn’t think long and hard about it. My personal philosophy, and one that I’ve grown to understand more through this “quitting” process, is that I don’t believe it’s healthy to be so connected and identified by what one does for a living. Historically, with modernization came the concept of the “career.” And for many people, a career is something they identify themselves with, and oftentimes strongly. I can remember graduating from college and not knowing what I wanted to do and one of my nutty professors (well, she was the only nutty one) being appalled that the majority of students in the particular graduating class had no idea (a huge part of that was the economic climate we were graduating into). It seemed like SUCH A BIG DEAL. I was only 21 years old, how the heck was I supposed to know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life?!? I can remember being scared sh*tless.
Fast forward to now, throw in a few jobs into the mix, and here I am. Yet one more “job” under my belt. And while I tried my all to convince myself that I was on a solid career path and these were the people (and company) I was going to grow over the next several years with…. I had a kid and my world was ROCKED.
Aside from meeting Thad’s dad, Thadman is by far the best thing to ever happen to me on so many levels. Basically I decided that if I was going to spend time away from my son, it was going to be worth every second. I had to be energized, invigorated, and hungry for more. And, I needed balance. Balance to do the things worth doing in life – not stuck in a cubicle day in and day out trying to be a self-proclaimed “expert” on something where experts are a dime a dozen these days.
So here I am.
A happy mom, loving wife, runner, surfer, home chef, urban gardener and writer (not to mention a kick-ass marketing/brand consultant).
Here’s to quitting!
3 thoughts on “On Quitting”
memckinney
Love you too, honey! Thanks for the kudos.
– Your biggest fan
Nadia
I’m so happy to read that you are doing well!! I want to meet #Thadman! I am moving back to the bay on July 9th 🙂
Also, thanks to your later post, I want to try being vegan. Seriously considering trying it for a month; Do you think that is long enough to feel the difference? I can’t believe it solved your husband’s allergy problems!
carlimck
And Thad really wants to meet you! He’s already rocked his UCLA onesie once. Re: trying vegan, do it for a month and see how you feel, but also know its not easy and that going cold turkey (for lack of a better term), is even harder. Maybe try no meat and fish first, then try no dairy. Again, we aren’t perfect vegans by any means (it’s super hard when you go out to eat, for example), but do your best. To really feel the effects, I would say giving it a go for three months (I know….) is your best bet. But make sure to arm yourself with some recipes!