photo courtesy of: hvaldez1
the past couple days i’ve been doing a lot of thinking about my personal life.
you see, i went through a tough divorce in 2006. in 2007 i moved 3k miles away from home to a place with no family or friends. then, with no savings or backup plan, i quit my job in 2008 to start my own business, and experienced a bad business breakup earlier this year (2009).
with each milestone, there were days i wanted to give up. and when i say ‘give up’, i mean REALLY give up and those close to me worried about me taking my life (and in some cases the life of another).
i thank God for giving me the strength to make it through, because i know there are many who did give up.
my life is much different now. i’m happy with my accomplishments and the success of my business, but in all honesty -
my personal life sucks could be better! and there is no one to blame but myself.
i’m fortunate to have the most amazing family and friends who understand my quirky and free-spirited nature. they’re also there for me when i pull myself away from work and never ending list of projects to make time for them – something i don’t do enough of, but would like to.
realizing this, i had to ask myself some tough questions. like:
- what do i value most?
- am i living the life i envisioned when i quit my job?
- am i happy?
- are there areas of my life where i can make changes?
what do i value most?
more than anything, i value ‘freedom/flexibility’. take away my freedom and i feel like a caged animal. i hate being told what to wear, where to be and how to do it. yeah, i know we sometimes have to follow a set a rules, but i prefer to live by guidelines, with the option to adjust as needed.
am i living the life i envisioned when i quit my job?
no. i work too damn much. i miss the days of a secure paycheck, medical insurance and paid time off.
more on:
- medical insurance – i miss it. i really, really do! i’m the adventurous type and not having medical insurance causes pause before i do anything that could cause a sprain, break or pregnancy (sheesh! talk about feeling like a caged animal…)
- paid time off – gone are the days of calling in sick, just because the weather is nice and i want to hit the beach or to spend a day shopping with my girls or just to sleep in late. now, if i don’t work, i don’t eat (something i love to do).
am i happy?
yes. but one can never be too happy and I’d like to have happiness coming out of my ears, contaminating everyone around me.
are there areas of my life where i can make changes?
yes. moving forward i will,
- spend more time with family update: def doing a lot more of this and loving it!
- visit and communicate with friends more frequently
- get out and socialize more i’ve tapped into some great creative groups
- start dating again
- develop a work schedule (i’m shooting for a 30 hr work week)
- get active (go snowboarding, pull out my bike, take up yoga again, start kickboxing, go hiking, )
- get more sleep yep, doing that
- move from freelancer to a true business owner
i hope these steps will help me discover work-life balance, take my business to the next level, minimize the feeling of loneliness (often experienced by entrepreneurs), find a mate 
and better align my life with my values.
I’ll keep you all posted. wish me luck!
