Return to Office

Welp, all good things must come to an end. And so alas I have ended my micro retirement and gone back to work. It's with anxious excitement I'm making my re-entry to Corporate America as I was initially resistant to the idea, but have spent the last few months unpacking where that resistance was coming from.

And what I discovered was that my resistance was rooted in self judgement or fear of other people's judgements. Judgements like “what was this last year for if all I was going to do was return to the same kind of job at the same kind of company I had left?” “Who was I if I left my corporate job to seek creative fulfillment and didn't continue my creative journey?”

But I realized that these kinds of self judgements are what kept me trapped in my corporate job for so long. Worrying about “how it would look if I didn't have a paying job” or “who would I be if I didn't work for a well known company” instead of listening to my gut and doing what I knew to be the next right thing. A year ago, the next right thing was to quit. To get some space to clear my mind, to discover who I was outside of my job, to replenish my creative spirit. And I did that. I did less and moved slower. I took a lot of naps. I took all the art classes I ever wanted to. I focused on building a creative practice and making more of the things that brought me joy. And I worked on being vulnerable enough to share them with others.

And now the next right thing is to challenge my brain in a new, yet familiar way and to invest in myself and my family financially. To seize the opportunity in front of me while it's there. There is nothing wrong with wanting stability; there is no shame in working for a paycheck to fund a better future for myself and my family. And if you can find gratification in doing a good job, in being productive, from contributing more good than bad, then there is nothing wrong with that either. I am saying this to myself, but I am also saying it to whoever is reading. You don't have to be one thing.

So here’s to the next thing!