Wednesday, September 21, 2011

do what you love.

 

i have always loved quotes. when i was younger, i would mimic movies, books and songs and then challenge my family and friends to guess what each line was from. quotes harbor wisdom, hope and thoughtfulness. my favorite quotes are those that make you want to change your life for the better. you know - the ones that talk about happiness and following your heart - i'm all about those. well, kind of. i had always loved those quotes, but i never really incorporated them into my every day life. i was on the path to happiness, i told myself, so i didn't need to focus on being happy right now. going to college; pulling all-nighters; listening to lectures from professors who didn't know what they were talking about; drinking gallons of coffee just to stay awake... this was all going to make me happy in the long run. i expected to graduate, land a full time job and *poof* i would be happy. i thought i should have been happy.

it took me one year and almost five months to learn that my expectations were wrong.

when i got my administrative job in glenview, i thought of it as a new chapter. that first day i knew i didn't like anything about it, but i also knew that i needed to suck it up in order to gain the experience and the paycheck. i hoped for cohesiveness with my coworkers and my work - but that never came. i just didn't fit in to the high-school-ish environment and after a month or two, i began to resent everything about it. i admit that i picked up on the job rather quickly and became good at what i did - but my resentfulness eventually turned into hatred, and i knew that i just couldn't do it anymore. it was exhausting. spending two hours a day hating my drive, and eight hours a day hating my job. 10 hours of my day i was in a bad mood. i started thinking of ways i could bring happiness into my life - hence this blog post - but when it came down to it, i was just too tired to do anything.

so i began networking and talking to my friends and family about what i should do. i love photography, but felt like i needed a lot more experience. i love event planning, but felt like i needed someone to take a chance on me. i love refurbishing, but am still learning. i also started thinking about possible part-time jobs that i could have fun at. once i started thinking outside the box, things started falling in line. i started receiving emails and calls about photo shoots; within a week of applying to starbucks, i got a call, an interview and a job offer; i got word of a referral for planning a big event in evanston next summer. things were happening so quickly - it was like i had chosen the perfect time to quit glenview.

so, that's exactly what i did. after six months, i quit my 'big girl' job and am now a starbucks barista! i am also spending the rest of my time focusing on my photography, event planning & refurbishing - and i couldn't be more happier about it. i feel less stressed, more active and free. sure, it's a little scary - but isn't that what life is about? taking chances and living life to the fullest.

3 comments:

foderak said...

LOVE this and it's so true! I also fell into the trap that if I just get my degree...If I just suck it up...If I just do what's expected of me...blah blah blah. It took a while for me to have the realization that I only have this life and you know what, you can't take it with you ;) If you're happy and if you're surviving/living within your means, then you have to do everything you can do ensure that you're living a life that YOU'RE enjoying. Nobody else has to enjoy it but you so fill it with things that you love and spend your time doing those things :)

Sherry said...

You always were the wise one. I love you, sweetie!

Michele Bell said...

I am so proud of you! Always remember, life is short so make everyday count. <3

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