I'm a Pro

Telling people that I chose to leave a job after only six months in this terrible economy without another gig lined up has produced some interesting responses. Some have thought I am down right crazy but most have been supportive and encouraging – neither response is super surprising. What has surprised me is just how many people seem to understand the leaving the job thing but they don’t understand the moving from NYC thing. Why wouldn’t I just look for another job? To me THAT is a crazy notion.

Why wouldn’t I just look for another job?!! It’s simple – in this job market there is no telling how long it could take to find another job and I’d be broke and penniless in about two months -- then what would I do? It would be crazy and careless to think that I could find another good job that quickly. I’m too much a realist and a planner to see it any other way. That’s the simple answer but there are two other bigger reasons as well.

First off, while I’ve really enjoyed my time in NYC if I am totally honest with myself I know that NYC is not where I am meant to be on a longer term basis. When I returned from the ship I knew that I wanted to make my life a priority – not just my job. I wanted to make sure I chose an area to live where I could see myself for a longer period of time. An area where I could find a place to live that wasn’t just “great – for now” – which is what I’ve always felt about the other places I’ve lived. For many reasons when the job in NYC came up I didn’t listen to that need – I ignored it and moved up here anyway. It was too great of an opportunity to pass up, right? Ha, ha – famous last words! Unfortunately I didn’t listen to my instinct and I took the job because, again, who wouldn’t take the job and move to NYC? And while I don’t regret coming up here at all – I needed this experience to get me to the mindset I’m in today and living in NYC has been such a great opportunity but again I look at that mindset of saying “why wouldn’t I take the job?” and realize that I was making decisions based on what seemed right on paper, so to speak, instead of what was truly right for me.

The second reason I didn’t for a minute consider staying in NYC is because this next job search is going to be so much more than just a task of finding a job (which is big and scary enough in itself - especially in this job market). I actually need to go on a career quest. I feel like I am at another big crossroads in my life and career. What do I want to do? What am I passionate about? Where do I want to live? In what place and what kind of job can I have the kind of lifestyle that I need and want? Not questions that can be answered quickly or solved just by applying to job ads. Which is why I thought that setting myself up for a longer term transition and search period was the smartest thing to do.

Now you might say – isn’t that what I did when I came home from the ship last spring? Sadly as I look back to that time I realize that I did not set myself up for success in the transition period nor was I asking the hard questions of myself and doing the things I needed to do in order to get myself to the next “right” place. This time around I’m going to look for an interim job to tide me over so that I can allow myself to have a little bit of a life and not feel stuck, stalled and destitute. I’m going to ask the hard questions and do research, exploration and take the time to make wise choices. I’m going to be open to different opportunities and I’m going to do what I need to do to set myself up for success in this transition period and in the next career move. These are really not things I would have had the luxury of doing if I stayed in NY – I’d have felt so much financial pressure to “get a job” that I would have taken anything that came up and most likely found myself in the same position I’m in now all over again.

While I don’t see this transition as being an easy one (frankly it’s scaring me to death right now) but I will say it again and again – I AM SO LUCKY TO HAVE THIS OPTION. I’m thankful to my family for taking me in, for my friends for supporting and encouraging me, and for everyone who views my decision as brave and courageous rather than just crazy and foolish. I’m also super glad that I am a crazy planner and super saver who does not “live large” in my life.

That leads me back to the title of this post. As I think about it I wonder if part of the reason so many people view my job decision as wise but my move decision as hasty is because moving your life is big and overwhelming – something people don’t do very often. I’m a unique case though - I’ve done this moving thing more than a couple times. I’ve even done the moving my whole life into storage thing more than once before. I’m a pro at it. I was awake at 6am this morning mentally thinking through how I am going to pack each thing, how I am going to put things in storage so that what I might need will be accessible, taking a hard look at all that I have to see if there is anything else I can donate and get rid of. In some ways I enjoy the challenge of figuring it all out and making it work. A side benefit is that all this moving I’ve done has helped me to continue to pare down my life and my “stuff” so that I can live more simply – how fantastic! Don’t get me wrong – moving my whole life is still big, still overwhelming, extremely inconvenient and I still have way too much stuff but it doesn’t scare me to the same level as it does other folks. So now it’s time for breakfast then out to buy some boxes and pack, pack, pack. Just another normal day in my life.