I Don’t Work for a Living
Posted on September 26, 2007
Do you work for a living? You know it can kill you don’t you? Maybe quitting is a good idea. Stress is a major killer in its many forms and a job is a sure fire way to end your life early.
As for me, yeah I have a long-term arrangement with a company to show-up everyday and go about doing cool projects that they need done. In the end, I play with technology, learn new stuff, put it into practice and the company benefits from the process. It’s a win/win deal and as long as it is so, I’ll show-up and keep experimenting. At the moment I prefer no other road.
Now the income thing, it has its merits and I need to pull in some income in one way or another. My wife and kiddos certainly appreciate the fact that I do so on a regular basis. But living is so much more than making a buck. I could certainly make more money shifting my efforts away from blogging. Compared to what I can make as a freelance developer, blogging pays peanuts and that’s if I do a bang-up job of publishing the site. No, I don’t do it for the money.
I often tell my girls, "find something you love to do, become good at it, people will pay you to do it and you’ll never work another day in your life." You’ve probably heard it before, but I think it’s a good reminder and plumb-line to evaluate ones life. How close is that description to your life?
I’ve certainly had some jobs that were a less than perfect fit. It’s been a learning process that brought me to this point. The overall equilibrium I sense during this season is nice, but I don’t count on it remaining indefinitely. Who knows, I may be in major re-evaluation mode at any moment. The touchstone for me is to pursue the passions in my life. I just don’t have much patience for spinning my wheels doing trivial tasks that offer little avenue for growth.
So I’m thinking through the things I enjoy doing. Some have a revenue producing stream, some less so. Stuff I like to do includes; writing, playing the guitar, gardening, coding sites, designing sites, reading, researching, biking, playing with my kids, spending time with my wife, hanging-out with friends, chatting online, being a part of a church, traveling. It’s all good and important stuff in my life and it all has its place. It’s part of what makes me uniquely myself.
Many of these mentioned are possible careers. The web developer mode seems to be working well for me at the moment. I’ve been a landscaper, don’t want to repeat that. Used to aspire to be a musician, amateur status is fine by me. I’ve worked as a gourmet chef, no thanks. I was at one time a youth pastor, not the right fit in this stage of the game. Writer, researcher, yeah those kind of fold into my current gig with coding and design. Being a webmaster is an all encompassing position. I do a number of diverse things with the main theme of finding solutions. That is a central core to my passion, I love to solve problems. It keeps me up at night and gets me up in the morning. The greater the hurdle, the more stoked I am when I get over it.
I’d love to hear what you do and how it fits your passions. I believe learning from the stories of other people gives insight back into one’s own life. What do you love to do? How much of your job is wrapped-up in those passions?
Filed Under Just for Fun, Philosophy, perspective |
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8 Responses to “I Don’t Work for a Living”
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I used to work for an advertising agency and then television. Now I just do freelance copy writing and of course a whole lot of studying
That’s very cool that you are pursuing the things that you are passionate about. It shows in your blog as well. BTW, your blog sends an amazing amount of traffic my way, not because my blog is so special, but because you have such volume running through your blog.
You’ve made me think of my oldest son who is just now realizing he should be drawing for a living so that he isn’t “working” for a living. He’s getting ready to quit a job he’s had for 10 years that has absolutely nothing to do with what he was put on this earth to do.
I loved this post…
Kelly, That is wonderful to hear. More power to your son. I thought of you too when writing this post as someone who has taken steps towards living their passion. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Problem solving and helping people is at the core of what I do to as well Phil. After many years of working in corporate jobs, I decided that my passion and work ethic wasn’t really a good fit in that environment.
Now I run my own business and get to work with a lot of different people. I face new and unique challenges and I have the opportunity on a daily basis to use my skills to help folks work more efficiently. I couldn’t love what I am doing more than I do really.
Really great post Phil
SB
Scott, That’s really cool Scott. You came to my mind too while I was writing this post. I know a number of people who fit this description. Who knows, I may someday go solo. I think it’s possible, but in this season of employment I’m enjoying my current situation so very much. I see the upsides to both paths.
I work for myself but I’m a rubbish boss - I pay very little if at all and I keep talking about needing a clear profit first. Good job I like me.
Matt, Sounds like you are living out of your passions and dreams. That’s very cool. Profitability is a very nice outcome. It’s the one thing I think that holds me back from going solo. That darn money thing.