Telling the World to Take a Hike
No matter who you are or what you do, there will come a time in your life when you have the opportunity to tell the world in general to just take a long walk off of a short pier.
These moments are the crossroads in our lives when we decide to stop playing nice in the sandbox and we give a person, an organization, or an employer a very distinct message:
No. I am not willing to do that anymore.
Unfortunately for a lot of people, these opportunities come at a point in their lives when they lack the confidence to choose the path that will take them to where they truly want to go, rather than to the place where they feel they are supposed to go.
Inspired by the work of Donna Karlin's Perspectives blog, and tagged by Alex Blackwell over at The Next 45 Years this post is about how each of us is empowered – and required – to take control of our lives at a crucial moment that will define everything that happens from that point forward.
For me, this concept resonates deeply because I have never been the "play nice in the sandbox" type. Not to insinuate that I'm a troublemaker, but rather that I am the type who will rock the boat just for the sake of doing things differently than everyone else…
I don't believe in people doing things just because everyone else is doing those same things, and I've spent most of my life proving that fact every chance that I got.
High School
Yep, I dropped out of high school when I was a Junior. I didn't believe in their system, I didn't believe in most of their faculty, and I certainly didn't believe in the ridiculous social structure that most high school kids lived by.
One day while on the way to my Economics class (which I despised), I made the decision that I was not going to allow this institution to define my life and my future anymore, and I not only walked right past my Economics classroom, but I kept right on walking right out the nearest exit.
Now, that does not mean that I don't believe in education – quite to the contrary, actually. Not only did I go back and get my GED later, but I also took so many online classes, night courses, and seminars that I have literally lost count.
By getting educated on my own terms, I obtained the skills that I felt that I needed, and I used them to get the work that I wanted to do. I walked out of high school when I was 16, but that didn't stop me from getting a job making more then $42,000 per year, and that wasn't even counting the stock options.
Employment
That brings us to the next major point in my life when I did the very same thing and told the same employer that I just referred to that I wasn't willing to play their game either.
I made plenty of money, had a beautiful office overlooking Puget Sound in downtown Seattle, WA, and I literally set my own schedule. Not only was my boss too mired in her own required duties to have the time or the desire to keep track of me, but as a result of my skills and my position, I was also able to make demands of the company that were met at almost every turn.
Nonetheless, when that company started the inevitable "downsizing" and reorganizing that most companies go through, I knew that it was time for me to leave my cushy job and my cushy paycheck behind. They wanted me to have more responsibilities, and to put in more hours each day, but they were not willing to compensate me financially in a way that matched the commitment that they wanted me to make to them.
I walked out that door as well, but that didn't stop me from starting my own business where I was on track to make $100,000 per year before I left that behind as well.
Privately Owned Business
After leaving my hefty paycheck and my corner office behind, I ultimately moved to Florida and became a full-time personal trainer. After learning the ropes at a high profile gym, I started my own personal training business (appropriately named Aaron's Personal Training), and I literally had more clients than I had time for.
At the height of my personal training career I was working from roughly 6:00am to between 8:00pm and 10:00pm, and I would have made over $100,000 that year if I had not stepped off that path as well.
Why? Because life is about living, and most successful personal trainers don't live their lives. All they do is work, and their own personal needs, social lives, and often even their health suffer as a result of the insane schedules and long hours required of any successful trainer.
After the Dust Settled
How many people quit school, get an amazing job where they call the shots, quit that job, start a successful 6-figure per year business, and then walk away from all of that?
People like me who realize that the truth of existence is that we are here to enjoy our lives, not to work our fingers to the bone only to retire at 65 or 70 with nothing to show for it but a measly pension and maybe a gold watch.
No, I believe in being in control of my life, and in doing the things that I want to do. Freedom is wealth to me, and in that regard, I am one of the richest people that I know.
So, as you take a look around your life right now, ask yourself some hard questions:
- Do I have this job because I truly love what I do and would I do it even if I wasn't getting paid?
- Am I in this relationship because I choose to be, not because I need this person or this situation?
Is my level of health and fitness what I want it to be, or do I allow my health to be dictated by the circumstances of my life?
If you can't answer those questions in a way that has your life on a glorious and joyful path of adventure, discovery, and happiness, then maybe it's time you started thinking about telling certain people, organizations, or employers that your life is about you, not about them!
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