Wow. Its been over 2 years since my last blog entry. In fact looking at the date of the last entry, it was 2 days after I started my then new job at a large insurance firm in the ‘City Of London’ (Think bowler hats, braces, tie pins etc.). It’s too clichéd to say “so much has happened”, so I’ll be more specific 1) I fell in love 2) Bought a house 3) Quit afore-mentioned job 4) Got new job. All the stuff inbetween was what happened whilst I was making plans 1-4. [John Lennon- hat tip].
Ok that’s that dealt with. Now to set the world to rights. Actually no, life’s too short. Well, I say that, it’s not short really, in fact that’s one of the lessons I’ve learnt, saying “I’m so busy, I can’t do x,y and z”, just doesn’t convince me anymore. You know when you know you’re kidding yourself, well that’s when I think you really start to learn lessons.
I’ve been telling myself I’ll do lots of things, a) Write/Film a short comedy b) Follow through on that idea I had for a web-site c) tonnes of other things. I’ve reasoned that its good to have the hunger, but perhaps not so good to have dreams you never attempt. (Is a web-site a dream?). I can’t even remember where I heard it first, and I’m pretty sure I didn’t hear it in its original format, but the following quote has become my motivational mantra:
Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.”
~H. Jackson Brown author of “Life’s Little Instruction Book”
Aside: As I type away, I’ve forgotten how ‘cathartic‘ [dramatic word apology] getting stuff out of your head and onto the screen is, and I ‘ve havent really even said anything.
Ok something interesting. I quit my last job, when I say quit, I mean quit, as in, I came in one day and decided I was going to quit. I wasnt being irrattional, I was following one of my own rules. The way I explain it is like this: When you are a child, you learn that somethings are dangerous, even before you do them, like touching fire, etc, undoubted you learn the hard way even after your parents tell you to “never touch the oven”. Some lessons are pre-programmed, you rationalise them once, for example, gravity can kill me. When you step near the edge of the train platform, the lesson kicks in subconsciously, you don’t have to rationalise it everytime, you just remember that gravity can kill you, so don’t be stupid.
Now back to my point, I have another pre-programmed lesson, and it goes “If you come home every night of the week, unhappy, and complaining, quit your job.”. Everyone has bad days, weeks, sometimes months, but no one has a bad 4 months, and if Im being honest, no one really should have a bad week, bad === inheriently unhappy, not rubbish at your job (I do that most days in pieces.)
So I quit, I didnt’ have another job lined up (although I did have to work my notice of 28 days), but deep down I knew being happy was more important that being employed. I also know enough about life to know that the grass is always greener, if you find the right job, sure you can mess up and get a worse job, but my point is, there is no end job, there are lots of jobs, lots of challenges, lots of new people and experiences out there. Thinking you’ve got it the best you can have it is what stops lots of people from moving to better, more fulfulling jobs (all in my own opinion and experience of course).
I’m not sure what I acheived here, which must mean I’ve finished writing.