A couple of days ago a friend and I were having a chat and we landed on an interesting subject. We talked about people that leave their well-paying and stable jobs in the middle age, right when their career is at its highest peak to do something completely out of the ordinary, or accept a job that to the outside world, would seem as a step back in their career.
Even though we may think of these people as those going through an unlucky mid-life crisis, I can honestly say I completely understand them and think that is one of the most clever things one can do. They gathered the courage and said “Enough.”. Sometimes in life we get to a point where everything is going well, we don’t have to worry about the finances or losing our job at any moment and everything seems to be perfect. Even when we ourselves think about changing something if first seems way to risky and we convince ourselves that it’s not worth it; however, as the desire for change gets stronger, our opinion can change.
Even though everything seems perfect from the outside, it is what we feel on the inside that truly matters.
If we feel anxious, sad, angry, empty or simply feel like something is missing, it may be time to think about a change. These feelings can arise for numerous different reasons and sometimes it can be due to our lifestyle, our self-actualization and our priorities. As we get older we put more emphasis on ourselves; we learn more about who we are and what we truly want while also being more aware of how short life really is.
For example, we realize that working 10 hours a day for someone who doesn’t allow for any flexibility and possibility for a work-life balance just doesn’t make sense anymore. And “sense” is exactly the word we focus on; in order for us to keep doing something, it needs to have that sense, that purpose. If something is causing us anxiety, fear, sadness or simply bores us, there is no point in keeping it in our lives.
Our job is an important part of life and if we don’t enjoy it, the other parts of our lives like our families and partners will suffer too.
When our children ask us for career advice, we tell them to find something they love, something they will enjoying doing every single day, something that won’t be a burden. There is no reason for us not to follow that advice as well; whether it makes us seem crazy or not, our life is our own and we need to make the best of it.