Tired Of The Corporate 9-5? How to Pursue Your Passion

Is the 9-5 corporate grind getting you down? Ok yes, I totally hear ya at times. But, it’s important to remember that before you go making it onto the Top 10 List of “Greatest I Quits Of All Time,” the corporate company you work for DOES in fact pay all of your bills, your medical benefits, and likely provides a much needed service to you or at least someone you know (ahem, Starbucks, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon). So the fact of the matter is, unless you’re swimming in money, you probably need your 9 to 5.

NOW ON THE FLIP SIDE, as long as you wake up, work your 9 to 5 each day, and then come home, go to sleep, and do it all over again tomorrow, well, that is in fact what you’ve set your life up to be, and ALL that you’ve set your life up to be. If you want your circumstances to change, then what you put into each day better change. So rather than flat out quit, perhaps it's time to consider how you can start adding some of the following options instead.

Set up your own company

One way to evade the constraints of a 9-5 corporate job is to step out and set up your own company as an entrepreneur. Then you can have total control over your business's culture and make it as relaxed and as creative as you want. Ha, well that’s obvious. BUT, statistically is it realistic for everyone? Probably not. While this is a VERY oversimplified piece of advice, if there is something that’s been nagging at you that you’re truly passionate about, and you’ve got the drive, then guess what, you CAN in fact make it be just that simple.

Why, how, and what do you mean Kristin? Here’s one thing I’ve learned over the last couple years. You see that last sentence in the paragraph above? Do what you love to do, KEEP DOING what you love to do, and do it BECAUSE you love to do it. Repeat, repeat, repeat. If you are creating something that truly represents you, everyone will admire it and nobody can match it. Repeat, repeat, repeat some more. Do it you because you LOVE to do it, and eventually you’ll start to figure out how and where you can really bring value to others.

Become an artisan

On that note, and also a real departure from the traditional suited and booted 9-5 corporate role (or sneaks in our case, folks), is to become an artisan, someone that makes an elite product usually by hand.

Of course, this can take a significant amount of time to get to a point where you can even earn enough money to live on, let alone match the salary you can expect to see in the corporate world. But like I said above, if it’s a talent of yours, and you really love it, you can set aside say 5-10 hours a week working on this while you keep your day job. Learn how to earn extra money online at the same time while you practice your art. This can help keep you afloat while you establish your businesses and customer base.

And seriously, if you were born and blessed with artistic talent, the world deserves to see it!

Learn a trade

A smart alternative to artisan work is to learn a more traditional hands-on trade such as plumbing, being an electrician, or even a painter. You know, things that every day people need, EVERY DAY! The advantage of these sort of careers is that they tend to pay a lot more than artisan roles, and are in constant demand as well, ensuring that you will get enough business to make a decent profit.

Of course, they are entirely different from the corporate world because you will travel to client locations, and deal with specific and various issues there, most of which will require hands-on work and lateral thinking.

It's also much easier to train in these types of areas as opposed to artisanal pursuits because there are plenty of schools or online resources that offer short courses, allowing you to get up and running quickly.

Help others

It's not that people in the corporate world don't help others. In fact, some roles focus on this, such as human resources and recruitment. Woohoo! (that’s MY 9 to 5). However, how awesome would it be to help others for YOUR cause?

If you are tired of showing up to a job everyday that you don’t feel a tangible connection to, choosing a job where you get to help people for more altruistic reasons can be a much better choice. Start by making a list of everything you love and are passionate about. For example, animals, nutrition, keeping our earth clean, certain vitamins, etc. etc. How could you help contribute to these companies, whether through your time or something else unique your skills and talents could offer them? Start by doing this on a volunteer basis, keep doing it consistently and you’ll get really good at it, and sure enough after a solid, consistent amount of time, I guarantee you someone from these organizations will want to include you on their team in a more formalized manner.

It all starts by you identifying what really makes you happy, and then you getting creative with the skills, talents, and passion that you’ve already got. You will do your best work when you are in love with it. So if that means doing it for a couple hours at night after you’ve already worked a 10 hour day, then it’s still a win-win for you right? Do what can support you, and do what makes you happy. If you can do both of those in one job, then great! If you can do both of those in two jobs, then that’s still great! As long as that happy part is in there, then you’re living a life worth living.

Much love,

Kristin

How to Start Writing In Your Spare Time

When that inkling to write creeps into your heart and mind, that feeling never quite dies. You might graduate college and go a decade into your career, much like myself, but eventually that desire to create expressions through writing will be knocking harder and harder at your insides, so badly wanting to come out.

Let’s face it, writing is the product of SO much passion. When you love to read and create and get lost in an imaginary world, it’s only natural that your mind will often come up with characters and ideas, plots and twists. So whether you were a budding author as a child, or you were someone that just wanted to write features and stories and snippets from your life, you will still have that feeling until you put pen to paper. Or, perhaps more aptly, fingers to keyboard.

So, let’s say you ARE interested in writing in your spare time, maybe even with the intention of turning this into a career. Or selling a story. How do you do it and where do you even start?

First, Just Start

Right now! When you’ve finished reading this post, open up your laptop and just get writing. Brain dump is what I call it. Brain dump whatever it is on your mind and don’t worry a second about grammar or organization. Just let the creativity flow. Getting started is often the hardest part, so if you just do it, you’ve beaten that hurdle.

Set Aside The Time

You’re pumped, you’re motivated on Day 1, but then life takes over again on Day 4, and you stop. Ya’ll, clearly I’ve been mad guilty of this lately. Hence, why I’m writing this post. Find time to write by first determining what’s a doable amount of time to write each day (I did 20 minutes starting out), and then get real with yourself to determine what time of day your brain is most capable of doing this. Perhaps it’s the wee hours of the morning when the world is quiet and it’s just you and your coffee. Or maybe your lunch break when you need to vent about your day. Whenever it is, just schedule it in and make a habit of it. When you’ve got the time set aside for it, you will write.

Kick Into Routine-Mode

You know what they say about the number of days it takes to make a lifelong habit. Do it for those 21 days straight and guess what, writing just became a glorious part of your daily life. Consistency is key to make it big, they say. So make sure you’re being consistent. Again, I have epic-ally FAILED at this recently. Ergo, this is a seriously important reminder on how much you’re capable of achieving when you’re in a routine. AND, the more of a routine you get into with your writing, the easier and more natural it will become.

Take It Seriously!

Like no joke, if you wrote for 20 minutes a day, you are capable of being one hell of a good writer in a matter of months! Umm, hashtag bosscard! And then there may come a time where you feel ready to take this whole writing thing to another level! Maybe you want to look at online jobs from home where you can write to make money and then write in your spare time creatively too. Or, maybe you want to think about getting a pitch together for a book proposal? Umm, my dream! So keep up the consistency and things WILL get serious for you.

Go Big and Without a Care!

Do NOT over-analyze and be hard on yourself. That’s not why you’re writing. You’re writing because you LOVE IT. You’re writing because it’s a God-given TALENT. You’re writing because it releases feelings, emotions, and creativity that make you feel whole each day. THAT is why you’re writing. And when you remind yourself of that each day, you WILL be consistent. And what did we say above? When you stay consistent, you will get really damn good. And when that happens? The possibilities are endless my friend. Go BIG. You deserve to.

-Kristin Leigh