Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Stop and Smell the Roses

Yesterday, when I was doing the spring cleanup at work, I couldn't help but reflect on my past business career as a Controller and Operations Manager.  Going to work in a suit every day... sitting behind a desk... going from meeting to meeting... dealing with protocol and office politics and people who had no business being in their positions... working 70 hours a week... the stress, weight gain and tiredness... banging my head up against the wall... all of that has all been replaced with progress.  Sure it's a different kind of  progress that I made back then (for instance... increasing shipping times to 3 days from 3 weeks... increasing sales 300%)... so why do I feel so much more fulfilled in my life now? 

All of those previously mentioned pieces of my day from the past are replaced with working at my own schedule... being outside in the sun and air with my hands in the earth... listening to my favorite music... dealing with no one over my shoulder or under foot and seeing the rewards of progress of planting something, nurturing it, and watching it grow into something beautiful.  It doesn't ask for anything to give it's bounty... a little sun and some rain maybe... but it's free for those to behold.  And as I do my work, surrounded by business people walking about the hotel in their business suits... I notice that they don't notice all of this beauty going on... just as I didn't when I was in their shoes.

I feel like I'm contributing more to life now than in my 20+ year business career and I feel so blessed to be able to appreciate the little things in life.  I'm glad that I can now stop... and smell the roses.
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9 comments:

  1. AdamMarch 30, 2011 at 9:55 AM

    I am of the opinion that we work to live and not the other way round. We often forget to enjoy life. Thanks for reminding us of it David :-)

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  2. BreenlanternMarch 30, 2011 at 10:08 AM

    I truly envy you your life change and career happiness. I wish I had both the guts to walk away from my cubby farm and the freedom to do so. But my decisions don't just impact me and my life, they impact Jeffrey and what I'm willing to sacrifice to be happier at work, I can't ask him to sacrifice. Plus, my health benefits are crucial to my survival and staying healthy. I hate people who make excuses for not making changes in their life to make themselves happier, and I know I sound like one of them, but I give this a lot of thought and I do not think the good will outweigh the bad of my leaving my current job at this point. I don't absolutely hate my job, I just am so unfulfilled and unhappy going there every day. So I do what I can to make the rest of my life as blissful as possible (and, in fact, am currently and actively taking serious steps to put my happiness and comfort first in that regard)

    I would love to take the time and come hang out with you, work with you and be a part of that world of yours you described. It sounds absolutely wonderful.

    I'm happy for you. Really happy. I hope, some day, I can start a post "Just like Dave did, I left a career behind that left me unhappy to start a new career as...."

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  3. JulieMarch 30, 2011 at 1:30 PM

    Color me jealous.

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  4. MarkMarch 30, 2011 at 3:11 PM

    Good for you! m..

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  5. RonMarch 30, 2011 at 5:58 PM

    Dave,
    I understand completely. During one of my breaks in between my banking back office managing jobs (trust operations) I was an estate gardner. I loved it! Breathing the fresh air, no office politics, no performance reviews, so "whose going to do Suzie's work now that she's called in sick?" challenges. And weight gain? I was in the best shape of my life! The only problem was that I waited to long for the switch in careers and I was probably too old (50) and couldn't make enough money to maintain my previous standard of living (I like to spend money). I hope you are successful in your career change. You know what they say "When you're doing something you enjoy, it's not work." Welcome to freedom!

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  6. ScottMarch 30, 2011 at 10:22 PM

    David - I know exactly how you feel as I worked for a bank for 20+ years - and while I was good at what I did and accomplished alot it wasn't fulfilling. I, too, am back to basics and enjoy the outdoors and the beauty of the world more then I ever did in the corporate world. Great blog and you express yourself so eloquently!

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  7. Ur-spoMarch 31, 2011 at 1:27 AM

    This makes you a very fortunate man indeed.

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  8. wcsMarch 31, 2011 at 3:33 AM

    The best things in life are... living! A lot of us (myself included) get sucked into stuff that we really don't enjoy. I'm not sure why we do it, but we do, we're supposed to. And we convince ourselves that we like it because we are good at it. And there's money involved. It's hard to turn away from that to the big unknown. Congratulations!

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  9. AnonymousApril 2, 2011 at 1:58 PM

    I applaud your priorities.

    This post brought to mind a short video I recently found to be thought provoking.

    It's by Pat Condell, but I can't remember the exact name of it. It does, I believe, have Jesus in the title. However, it is not at all religious.

    Condell, toward the end, talks about working outside in the open air with good, clean life-giving earth, being a part of nature, and considering the lilies of the field. I'm confident you would find this short video to be validating.

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