Most people see their day jobs as prisons to escape from; a ball and chain around your ankle you dream to one day break free from.
If you hate your day job, it’s probably far from anything you would consider an asset or a gift. But what if it could be a tool to help you create your freedom business? What if seeing your job as something to escape from was actually keeping you trapped?
It’s easy to see your job as a means to an end. It’s just something to keep you afloat while you work on your real dream. Just a grind you deal with so you can use the rest of your time doing what you really want to do.
I think this is a short-sighted approach. Your job doesn’t have to be just a cage you want to break free from. When you view it in that way, I think it actually keeps you stuck.
When I was working at my day job, I would often commiserate and complain about how much I loathed it and dreamed of the day when I could finally say goodbye to it for good. Even though I was doing work that I kind of enjoyed, there were many things that frustrated me immensely.
Just to name a few…
- I didn’t like being told what to do (I think all entrepreneurs have some amount of control issues).
- I didn’t like being constrained to a schedule not determined by me.
- I didn’t particularly enjoy working with some of the people at my job. (Okay, some of them I couldn’t stand.)
But guess what? Complaining about those things only made me more attached to what I didn’t want. The more I brooded about my predicament, the harder it was for me create what I really wanted: working for myself and being in control of how I spent my time.
The more I resisted my current situation, the harder it was for me to move away from it. Rather than pushing against it, I needed to be like water crashing against a rock, completely submitting and therefore penetrating it. By not resisting the rock, the water can transform it over time into sand.
I eventually realized that I needed to stop resisting and work with what was supposedly holding me back. I had to turn my adversary into an ally.
How I turned my greatest nemesis into my greatest ally
The first step — like most things — for me started with changing my mindset. Rather than seeing my job as evil and despising it every waking minute, I started to try viewing it in a more positive light.
After all, when I thought about it, it provided we with a lot of nice things. It helped give me a stable income while I worked toward building my own business. It allowed me to hone valuable skills that I would eventually use when publishing my first ebook — like learning how to use InDesign. It also helped me to be humble. I had to accept that while this wasn’t my dream job, it wasn’t that bad; there are a lot of other people that have it worse.
I had to remember, too, that while there was a huge gap between where I wanted to go and where I was now, the people I admired worked extremely hard to get there. It’s easy to be jealous when you see people skyrocket to success and fame over night. But rarely is it that simple or that glamorous. What you don’t see is the years of work that led up to the delicious fruits of their hard labor.
My day job also taught me how to be patient. When you’re working towards creating your own freedom, rarely do you see the yields of your efforts instantaneously. Building a business is more like farming than hunting. You till your beds, you plant your crops, and cultivate them for weeks or months before you ever reap the rewards.
Building a business while working for someone else taught me a lot about having patience and faith that this was all going to pay off eventually.
Starting to make the transition
Once I started seeing my job as a gift, I began to look for ways that it could help me achieve my ultimate goal of leaving it. I began to see it as a nest preparing me for flight and I looked for all the ways it could help me start training for the day I would finally spread my wings.
One of the greatest benefits of my job was how relaxed they were about “face time” and how much time you spent at your desk. Their main concern was that you got your work done and that it was done well. Because of that, I found ways to optimize and streamline my work to be able to finish it in about 60% of the time it was supposed to take.
A lot of the work I did was recurring and predictable which presented a lot of opportunities for optimization. Prior to my being there, there were little or no processes in place for most tasks, and the ones that were there were inefficient. By creating really clear steps for each task and set of tasks within various projects, I was able to cut out a lot of the fat from my work day.
I also found ways to automate certain parts of my work. One example was a part of my job that required printing of certificates after they were awarded to an employee. Normally these were all input by hand, but I found a way to create a database of all the employees, and through a quick search and select, had the program insert all the data into the certificate and print it automatically.
Little things like that might not seem like much, but over the course of weeks or months they start to add up.
Of course I was fueled by an urgent motivation. Any time I could save or optimize could be applied to the business I was working to build. And I wanted this, badly.
With any “free time” I had I would work on a blog post, network, or do something to improve my website. Sometimes that was at lunch, other days I would finish my day job work early and cram in as much work as I could on my legacy work before leaving for the day. Because my employer was concerned with performance and not churning, they were absolutely okay with me working on personal projects as long as my core work didn’t falter.
Each day working on my freedom business added up slowly and contributed to my ultimate goal of working for myself. Step by step, I got closer and closer to the summit.
Final preparations for the leap
While reframing my mindset and optimizing my work helped, I knew it could only bring me so far. If I really wanted to make this transformation happen, I had to get out of the nest and start stretching my wings.
In order to do that, I had to do two things:
- I needed to build a safety net of savings my wife and I could fall back on in case things went south after I quit my job.
- I needed to create more time for the business in order to really gain some serious momentum.
Because my wife and I had always lived within our means and were pretty frugal, our expenses were fairly low. We didn’t have a car payment or any debt at the time, and were able to live on about $2,000-$2,500 a month. We felt pretty good about having three months of expenses in savings before I took the leap, so we set a goal of $7,500 for our quitting fund.
Strangely, the more our savings grew, the more I found myself thankful for my job. It was literally funding my freedom. Without it, I couldn’t achieve my dreams.
As our savings grew, I began formulating a plan to modify my work schedule. Most people don’t think that their work is very flexible and that there’s no way they could work from home two days a week, or move from a 40 hour a week to a 20 or 30 hour a week schedule. I’ve asked a lot of these people if they’ve ever considered asking their employer to work from home or change their schedule and the answer is usually “No.”
I’m always surprised to hear this. I think we make way too many assumptions about how flexible our day jobs really are.
So, here’s an idea: Create a proposal talking about what exactly you want out of your work and how you want to customize it. That might mean working four instead of five days a week, or working from home more often. Whatever it is, craft a pitch to your boss and talk about all the reasons why this is going to benefit them.
That’s what I did. I talked to my boss about how they were going to save money with me only working four days a week and how I was going to be even more focused and effective when I was there.
And guess what? They were totally fine with it. I was nervous and thought it wouldn’t work, but it did.
Working only four days a week at my day job allowed me the time and focus I needed to really build momentum with my dream job the remaining three days of the week. It gave me the time I needed to launch my first product and create a job replacement income from my business.
You can use your day job as a springboard, too
If you’ve been hating your job and feel trapped by it, I get it. I really do. It’s not easy.
It’s not fun feeling like someone else is renting out your mind for 40-60 hours a week. It’s not easy when you can’t stand the people you didn’t choose to work with.
But, in the meantime, why not accept and even appreciate what you have now? It may not be where you ultimately want to be, but why not use it as a vehicle for helping you get there, rather than a ball and chain that’s keeping you stuck?
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Have you ever felt trapped by your day job? What did you do to change how you felt about it?
very timely post for me. I’m in a day job to try to stabilize while i work on aligning myself to my greater vision (I don’t like to say that I hustle; I align). I had this crazy idea of quitting now and stalking WDS even though I have no savings. My life can be extremely frugal since I live in the Philippines and can live under $1000 a month. I could sell more crap… It’d be gutsy, bold. But then Reason and Logic come in and tell me I should stick it out longer.. I’m just trying to figure… Read more »
@JanetBrent Glad that things are trending upward for you Janet. You definitely deserve to be successful.
Hi Jonathan,
I like that this article talks about ‘Attitude’ first and action second because that’s where I am right now. I enjoy several parts of what I do in my day job else I would have quit long ago. But I also want to do my own thing simply to have a vibrant legacy to leave for my son. I hate to admit it but I am not fired enough yet.
Sue
There is much more on this subject in the book “Quitter.” It’s a really good book about how to enjoy your job until you find the right time to quit it.
@tiffanylynnyoung That’s a great book Tiffany. Jon has a lot of wisdom to share on this topic.
This is a very timely post for me! After quitting my job as a city lawyer 3 years ago and then falling apart as I realised I didn’t know what to do, I have been temping in the same company for the last 9 months. I’ve gone from lawyer to PA and it has really challenged my ego. After doing lots of work on myself, I’m now mentally ready to go at it alone but perhaps not financially. It can seem like a real cop out to stick with your job and actually save money so you have that safety net,… Read more »
@MakeMeJoyful Thanks for sharing your courage and being vulnerable.
Very timely. I’ve been working on my own business back at it after I took a four year break, keeping it running part-time time while I worked a day job. A day job I actually managed as you to complete in 60% with 150% results. I negotiated a good severance and have been trying my way through this business and fllirting with others. Recently I actually considered taking on something part-time in my slow season, something to challenge me more than my schedule that is fairly open and something to help with all the little things that add up when… Read more »
@Suprema Sounds like we have something in common!
Great post! may I suggest to you: put an email button on your posts so readers can send them to others. I think you might increase readers 20 – 30% nearly over night.
@faisalxt Great idea. :)
While your post has very valid points, in my situation, my day job is creating excruciating anxiety. It’s not just me, others have said that place is “crazy”. and it’s a big corporate office, so there is no flexibility. No work from home, no part time. I actually am on a medical leave of absence right now because it has made such a negative impact on me. and of course, I don’t want to look for another “day job”. I feel so damn stuck!!!
@sbelle89 When I worked for my last employer, I felt the same and started doing a lot of personal development as I thought I wasn’t ‘good enough’ to leave and find something better or worse, what if the new job wasn’t any better! After I negotiated a severance and took the leap, two of my co-workers (of the 7 employees) filed for mental distress! Before I left one of the partners was diagnosed with a mental illness. Maybe it was contagious! His iratic behaviour was producing a lot of negative energy I’d say. My thoughts are checking out the possibilities… Read more »
@sbelle89 I can definitely relate to that feeling! Sometimes it isn’t a matter of working with your job or seeing it in a better light. Sometimes it really is just plain horrible and you need to find something else.
It definitely is a good springboard to doing bigger better things. Cant start at the top.
Nice article
@Mfleising Gotta work your way up. :)
This is exactly what I needed to hear!
I refer to my ball & chain job as the ‘zombie job’ & while that might not change, I want to make sure my feelings toward it do so that I can catch up to my dreams. I’ve been trying to get to a starting point, but after reading your journey I’m beginning to think that could be what has held me back. I’ll try & find learning experiences each day. Streamline my work so that I can sneak in some extra dreaming.
@apockylypse I think once you start to make this shift in your mindset things will start to open up for you.
Totally awesome and completely agree, the first step is the mindset shift! Once you are in that place of knowing your job is your key to your freedom then other things will start to fall into place. Love that you shared this story!
@LoriLynnSmith Thanks Lori, I’m glad that you were impacted by it.
Loved this one, It’s more or less the same thoughts I used last year to quit my job. that last year was particularly hard, because I didn’t want to be there, but I endured, saved enough cash for me and started to get some freelance designer gigs around the net.
Over 6 months have passed and I feel that year was worth the difficulties, I have a stable business and I’m making all my projects grow in a good sustainable fashion. :)
@EnsoJourney Good for you man, sounds like you’re on the right track.
I love my day job which has let me do far more investing things than I ever dreamed of. My day job enabled me to raise a family, buy a house, and create a nest egg that makes the future not only possible, but likely. Last fall I cut my hours by one day a week. Still get to do the same neat things among the same good people at work, but have a day to spend at home, living the dream. Right now, I have the best of both worlds and I’m loving it!
@fbsnyder Seems like a lot of people here are cutting back their hours at their day jobs, that’s really great to hear.
[…] How I Used My Day Job to Fund My Freedom Business | Illuminated Mind Tweet · Email · Tweet · Email. Most people see their day jobs as prisons to escape from; a ball and chain around your ankle you dream to one day break free from. If you hate your day job, it's pro… […]
I love this post. I often find myself getting into a rut and getting tired of my day job, whether it’s my classes at college, my part-time job on campus, or summer internships. It’s easy to get into the grind and forget the larger picture — what I’m going to take from the job, what kind of great experience I can get from working with different people in different positions, etc., etc. I was incredibly nervous about quitting my part-time job in high school, which I’d held for about three years (that’s the longest I’ve ever held a job for…internships… Read more »
@annedreshfield That’s a really great reminder. I think we often get so focused on the micro and being in the trenches that we forget about what we’re doing this for and why it matters.
I love this post because it seems grounded in reality! Thank you. Sometimes the “quit your job, be brave and do your own thing!” seems a bit unrealistic and foolish, especially to those of us with family responsibilities (and possibly lots of debt). This post provides a healthy and positive way of looking at your day job, balanced with how to create a foundation to be able to work toward your dream goal. Personally, I am looking at moving the opposite direction temporarily… My “own thing” hasn’t developed into a large or consistent enough business yet, I believe it will… Read more »
@jennifer2 Yeah, a lot of people are like “Jump and the net will appear!” Well, I’m not that crazy. I like to take very calculated risks.
@jennifer2 Agreed, it seems like a lot of the other bloggers out there telling everyone how to accomplish their dreams must have lived at home with mom and dad when they finally started to see a return on their time investment. I know personally, it would be really hard for me to give up the comfort and stability of my long time job, unless whatever else I was doing started to pay the bills, and the job became a hinderance.
I have dropped down to 4 days/wk at my job and am considering working only 3 days. I am blessed in that I have a husband who makes a good income and is very supportive of me..whether I want to work part time at my job or quit and pursue my dream full time. I too was feeling miserable at my job even tho I really like what I do. I am a dog/cat groomer and when I thought about it, I realized I am in a creative line of work. And I get frustrated with my artwork sometimes because… Read more »
@Christine Book Good for you Christine, that’s a great way to look at it. It’s hard when you’re really awkward in the beginning, but when you stick with it that’s when you start to really get good.
AWESOME POST! I know that I can really relate to several aspects I have worked for a large grocery chain for most of my life minus several games between now and when I first turned 16 (Im 26 now). Having been at the same company for so long already, I have often felt it was beneath me, or that I couldn’t stand it, etc. Im a college graduate, and a good college at that, but Im still working at the same job as I was since before I graduated High School. I know that I can and should… Read more »
It’s been quite a while since I’ve had a day job, and sometimes I really miss it. The camaraderie, paid for seminars, introductions to topics I would have number thought to discuss (often in the lunchroom or while stopping for a chat with the EA of the president of the company) kept my mind fresh & full of possibility. I try to pull as much of that into my daily life (so thankful for social media), but it’s not quite the same as seeing people in real life every single day. Yeah! Finding a way to blend entrepreneurship with a… Read more »
I had to stop reading at this line to comment and soak it in. It is a brilliant metaphor. Rather than pushing against it, I needed to be like water crashing against a rock, completely submitting and therefore penetrating it. ((((By not resisting the rock, the water can transform it over time into sand.)))) That is such a beautiful piece to carry forward. If we accept our lives as such in the here and now and not spend time wishing we were elsewhere, you are right, we better serve our desired dream work life and ultimate goals. … Read more »
@Teresa Capaldo Thanks for showing up here Teresa. I’m glad this resonated with you.
Beautifully written post Jonathon. I loved hearing your story. Thankyou for sharing. x
Sorry. Didn’t mean to spell your name wrong. oops! Jacs x
Feeling trapped for sure. The best way I can describe it is it feels like a prison. No escape! Actually, this post is really relevant to me right now. Thanks for sharing Jonathan.
I can totally relate to this one. Thankfully, I really love my job – I’m a receptionist with very little actual work to do, my boss giggles with me all day long and is cool with me working on my blog. Still not diggin’ the lack of control over my time, though, so I’ve been obsessed lately with becoming self-employed asap. Your post put it into perspective for me – it usually takes time to do that, and lucky for me, I’ve got nothin’ BUT time at this job. I really should be taking more advantage of it. So I… Read more »
Side note: I feel totally rude for shortening your name. Sorry Jonathan!
This issue brings up a lot of the same common principles as others.
-Make a solid plan – When you can see your time at your day job in context of a larger strategy it makes it easier to take
-Communicate in a healthy way with the others involved – You did this when you talked to your bosses about changing your schedule.
-Remember that doing your best is all you can do – Make your plan, ask for what you’d like in the healthiest way you can and then just know you will have the optimal situation even if it’s not ideal.
I completely agree with not resisting your current situation. I detested my last job for many reasons. The more I dwelled on all those reasons, the more my life sucked and the more stuck I felt. I tried negotiating different kinds of flexibility with my boss but he was completely incapable of thinking outside of his incredibly small box. As soon as I simply accepted my situation and felt gratitude for its benefits, I was much happier and things started to change in the right direction. A couple months after accepting my situation I was offered a much better job for the same pay working… Read more »
this is probably you’re most real-world applicable/realistic post ever. using and seeing your job as a springboard to the long term goal. a necessary evil, but more so, a tool that is working toward the end goal.
I wish I had read this a year ago… I was in that exact situation, breezing through tasks without challenge and hating my position within the company (“How is it possible that I haven’t been promoted yet?!). Sadly, I chose to leave for another company where the position wasn’t at all what was offered to me and I quit and was unemployed for quite some time. Now, I’m starting my own marketing consulting business and am finally happy. Scared, but happy!
Great post as I’m currently struggling to keep my sanity at my day job. I left the hustle (100 hr weeks, 3hr/day commutes) of the private sector 1.5 years ago, and took a job with the govt as I knew it would be a much better work-life balance and ultimately allow me to pursue my passion of creating web apps. While the time to do so hasn’t been an issue, my daily dealing with colleagues is dreadful…everyone is so negative and hates their jobs, so all they do is complain. I do my best to ignore it, but its hard… Read more »
@ShawnArnwine I wear headphones for as long as my ears can tolerate them being on my head. :-D It cuts down on how much of the negativity I have to listen to in any given day. I smile and be as pleasant as I can be when engaging becomes necessary, but seldomly do I receive it in return. I’ve found I had to learn not to take anything personally. That has helped my mindset. My biggest challenge lately is focusing on getting any work done at all, because its so engaged on what I’d rather be doing. And I have… Read more »
@SittingTurtle I’m also a fan of the headphones while at work – not that I don’t like my coworkers, but it does allow you to get in the zone and actually get stuff done.
*delurks* Im CONVINCED you wrote this for me. Thank you.
@TamaraP79 Thanks for delurking, hope you’ll do it more often. :)
I’ve never thought of it this way before. I suppose I’ve never considered the possibility that the more I’m negative about my job the more it will keep me stuck in it. Didn’t even realise I was doing it – and here’s me convincing myself I’m quitting my day job positively! Thanks for the different angle Jonathan – always enjoy your posts.
This post has single-handedly made me rethink how I’m currently showing up to my day job. So grateful for the inspiration to reframe my experience. I love seeing the personal aspects of how you struck out on your own – super helpful!
This is a very honest and real post. Money is an important issue to address and all too often people try to act like it isn’t. I really like the approach of slowly transitioning from a traditional 9 to 5 esque job to part time to completely on your own all the while, building your business on the side. I think this is powerful because when you are running your own business you need all your creative juices. If you spend all your time worried about financial constraints it really limits creativity. But in making an intelligent transition it allows… Read more »
Hi Jonathan, Sorry I’m a little late to the party. I first read this at work – FANTASTIC post! I knew I wanted to take a little time to craft my response. Thanks for the best summary I have seen on how resistance keeps us stuck! I have always liked my job, which is a good thing, because I have had a side business (music teaching studio) for almost 8 years now. I made some financial mistakes in the early years and ironically became more dependent on my full-time job as a result. It is a good thing… Read more »
Great post Jonathan. I too have turned my job into my biggest ally. I’ll be writing about it on my blog soon as well. I decided one day that I was going to deliver so much value to the company I worked for, that they would be forced to work around my terms as opposed to theirs. I told a few people about my plan and they scoffed at the absurdity of it. Three months later, I no longer have to go to the office and I can work anytime & anywhere I want to. The next step is to… Read more »
As always, this is a great and insightful, post, Jonathan. I recently just took a full-time position and have been on choppy waters emotionally about it – how to reconcile it with my artistic work, my ever-growing desire to freelance full-time and work for myself, and my needs. I am glad that you articulated how looking at one’s job as a path to freedom can be liberating and motivating. I took the job with a clear idea of how it will lead to freedom financially to grow my personal brand and live as a full-time creative artist. I also chose… Read more »
I don’t hate my job, but I’m finding less and less value in what I do. I don’t want to quit, but I want to find what I need to move forward. To write without limitation, to design, and to pursue a life that’s more than a few hours before sleep at the end of the day. What am I going to do? I’m going to keep writing, but for myself, so I don’t feel pressured and I won’t forget how or at least learn to grow creatively. I’m going to keep working, but I’m going to look for the… Read more »
Nice post, it really resonates with some thoughts I’ve had lately about “trying too hard”. We push and fight and try to influence the change we want to see — meanwhile the lack of real results and the griping about it becomes habitual – focusing all our attention on the roadblocks that we can’t change, and missing the real opportunities. The situation really is a gift, just as you described, and by changing my perspective just a little, I can be happy with that. Especially when I see the value of the experience and what I can build on it.… Read more »
I cut my day job’s working week to three days in a row. My earnings, although 40% lower, keep me debt-free. I reduced my expenditure by downsizing and de-cluttering. The “off duty” four days give me a positive work-life balance. The time and energy saved becomes “disposable”, allowing me freedom to choose projects which uplift me.
I guess you’re right here! Some days it’s easier said than done, but I guess I’m on the right track working my day job only 3 days a week… And I really notice my productivity is much higher on days I don’t complain about that job, or cold and rainy weather, or anything for that matter.
Thanks for this post Jonathan. I am new to your site, have just been reading it for about a week and find it very useful. I also have a day job that helps me to not “prostitute” my art. What I mean is that I don’t feel the preasure of having to create commercial art to sell and bring food to my table and I can pAint what I really want to. Good part my day job is link directly to the art field, so as you mention, is bout finding the positive parts to make it work towards the… Read more »
I used to feel that way with my previous job, however right now I have no problem with my current job. I understand that it is a stepping stone for my dreams and as such I don’t laothe it. I can give it 100% energy and stay positive all day. Also, like you mentioned I can even optimize certain tasks and fit in some of my own training for the future without comprimisng the job itself. I also find that just having the job and being able to say that I’m doing something from 8 to 5 allows me to… Read more »
I used to feel that way with my previous job, however right now I have no problem with my current job. I understand that it is a stepping stone for my dreams and as such I don’t laothe it. I can give it 100% energy and stay positive all day. Also, like you mentioned I can even optimize certain tasks and fit in some of my own training for the future without comprimisng the job itself. I also find that just having the job and being able to say that I’m doing something from 8 to 5 allows me to… Read more »
Great post. I currently write for a marketing and advertising research firm. Love writing. Hate doing it for the benefit of multinationals. But I’m focussed on learning as much as I can so I can move forward with my passion which is helping individuals and home-businesses market and communicate successfully.
Thanks Jonathan. I see work now more of a way to hone skills in different areas and pay my way to starting my own business. For example, although I fully intend to start my own business as soon as possible, I am searching for a new job in a sector which will give me more skills in the area I want to start my business in.
I remember commenting to a woman in a business coaching group I was part of that while my job wasn’t horrible or anything, I couldn’t stand it because I felt like I was losing my life doing something that made no real difference to anyone and that didn’t connect with my heart; in fact, it required me to shut down as much as possible because of all the extremely negative people I was surrounded by. I literally felt the passage of hours on the clock as if I was bleeding out. This wonderful woman asked the same question you posed… Read more »
Hi Jonathan! Thanks so much for his encouraging post. I’ve been traveling along the EXACT same path and I’m currently at the stage where i’m looking for more flexibility and freedom at work. I had brought up the idea of working from home in a casual conversation but it was shut down. I know I can make a convincing argument on my productivity and work quality improving but I need your help. What were your reasons on why/how this was going to benefit them? And how was your absence saving them money? Thanks so much for being an inspiration and… Read more »
This is precisely our plan for our third leap from “stability”…while the first two were quick emotionally driven decisions, they paved the path which led us to where we are today. Out of debt with savings & location-independent skills accumulating.
Use what you have been given to build your boat, sew your sails, buy your maps/charts, then go. ;)
This is so timely! Just yesterday I went to the SBA in our area and the advisor first didn’t listen to my idea and literally told me I needed to ‘find a job I would enjoy at a Fortune 500 company’. I realized that not all counselors at for entrepreneurs are entrepreneurs themselves or have a limited scope of what will and won’t be successful. Earlier this week, I had the epiphany of making my job my friend too. I became so frustrated because I literally can complete all of my scheduled work in one hour Monday through Wednesday. Thursdays… Read more »
I like the practicality of this post and have certainly felt trapped in a job. I work in what my community considers a “good” and “stable” job and being the dreamer that I am, who often isn’t sure how to follow through on much of anything without having a serious reason, it is often disheartening to share my dream of singing for the world with all of these sensible people. So in the past, my dream meanderings have been met with words like “yeah, but you ‘d have to be crazy to quit”. The thing I hadn’t yet realized then… Read more »
Great Post. I have found that I am much more happy at my day job (a job that I don’t want to be at) when I accept I am there now but have the power to make a change. This leads me to being more productive out of work and work on projects more easily. With a negative attitude, I shut down these resources, most importantly the energy to get what I need done outside of work.
I’m really grateful for this post. I’ve been pondering how to cut back on my hours and what you told your boss is a helpful template. I plan on optimizing more processes at work (the busier you are, the less bored you are) and then making the case for cutting down 5-10 hours. I get the feeling that my boss will try to load me down with more stuff to do so we’ll have to see how that goes. No matter what, though, I’m tired of working so hard and not being able to enjoy being outside or having enough… Read more »
I am going to view my circumstancesdifferently. I am also going to overview the backpack that I think yyour wife emailed each page to me….thank you both…Iits finally my turn :)’m going to do this…