Reinvention, Redirection and Rejuvenation!
By Pamelagrace Beatty
My dream job turned into a nightmare. So, I retired. But whenever someone asked me if I was retired, because I was certainly in the age group that could, I could never say “Yep.” Agreeing that I was now retired just wouldn’t come past my lips. This was partly because after I left my last full-time job, I kept working as a consultant. I wasn’t ready to step out of the work world. I didn’t feel like I was retired, because I wasn’t. I just opted into Medicare versus buying my own health insurance. That was all.
Going back to being a consultant was fun – for a while – but then I started to feel dissatisfied. My assignments were interesting at first, but they became more challenging as time went on. I found myself wanting to just have fun and that wasn’t what was showing up in my work. My work was becoming more difficult and fraught with issues. There was a time when dealing with conflict and solving problems was a welcome challenge, but now I found it all frustrating and stressful. My activities outside of work were growing more interesting and compelling to me. I wanted to have more time to paint and to get better as a jazz vocalist. I thought going part-time would fix the problem. After working part-time for a couple of years, I still found I didn’t have the amount of time I wanted to do what I really wanted. And then the pandemic hit and gifted me with the extra time I needed through the worldwide isolation mandate.
Nearly 37% of the people working in the U.S. lost or changed jobs in 2020. The isolation period was hard on everybody! During this time many people did some soul searching and realized they were working at jobs they didn’t like. On average, usually 50% or more of working people dislike their jobs. As a result of being at home and having time to think, many decided not to go back to the jobs they had pre-pandemic. Around 65% of working Americans are actively looking for jobs right now. This, of course, has been very hard on businesses and some have taken steps to make their jobs more desirable to new employees by paying more and offering better benefits. Some companies have even offered sign-on bonuses at job levels where they were usually not offered in the past, because it has been so hard to get good candidates for their open jobs. Why aren’t the people coming back to work and why are so many quitting “good” jobs are the questions still being asked. I believe, like me, many folks have had time to think about how they felt about those jobs they had and have decided to take advantage of the times and make different choices.
Many folks see their jobs as a means to an end. They want to feed their families (and themselves) perhaps put the kids through school, maybe take vacations, buy new cars and so on. Mostly, working folks don’t sit around in a state of Zen, asking the Universe “What would make me happy?” I have been a career coach for many years and each time I have asked a client what work they would like to do, they are always incredulous. Their goal has been to find a job, of course. Not find a job they would love. It would take a while to convince them that they could find the work they would like versus just settle for a job, any job. It pretty much takes the same amount of time to find something you like as to find something you don’t like. So why not go for what you would like? The problem is that they weren’t used to thinking that they could have a job they liked versus just work to pay the bills. When you really enjoy what you do, it isn’t work. The time flies by. You feel excited and motivated. You look forward to going to work. An example is a friend of mine who composes music. He would work all night and never complain about how much time writing music took. I completely understand. When I was writing outlines for workshops I did for organizations, I could easily stay up all night and work all day on the content. Then I would present those workshops at the plants and have my classes fit their 24-hour work schedule. I might teach a workshop in the afternoon, night or wee hours of the morning and found it all fun. When we love what we are doing, it is so easy to do it. When we don’t, it is three times as hard and takes longer to do, and sucks the life right out of us!
The action “hack” for finding work you would really enjoy is to know what it is you would like or love to do. To do this we have to take time out. Look inside ourselves. It is important to open up to the little dreams we may have had that we have shut away and/or forgotten about. Some folks I know have turned a hobby into work that they get paid for. Some have taken the work they did for a company and offered their services as a self-employed person.
If we can’t find those little dreams, then we look outside ourselves and notice what catches our attention when we hear or see it. What gives us a little rush? What makes us say, “Ooo, that looks like or sounds like fun! Wish I could do that.” And then follow that interest. Look into to it. Find out what it takes to do whatever it is. Try it on, experiment with it and see if you can make it work.
During the pandemic isolation period I took my hobbies of painting and singing to a new level. I developed my art website and expanded my repertoire of songs. My band and I kept rehearsing, waiting for the time when things would open back up again, and we could play in front of a live audience. The contract I was working on ended with the start of the pandemic. I had time to think and work on my own stuff. I realized that these “hobbies” meant more to me than just something I did on the side. I wanted my side-dishes to be the main entrée. So, I have committed myself to work on them and not do the work I was doing pre-pandemic. It took me a while to embrace the idea that I could present myself as an artist and a vocalist rather than someone who just paints and sings. It surprised me how much nerve it took and takes to say to someone when they ask me what I do, “I am an artist and a jazz vocalist.” It still feels a bit strange, but it also feels very good. It is energizing and exciting. And it doesn’t feel like work, except for the online marketing aspects, but that’s part of the deal. The important thing is I am happy with this decision, and as I sit in my living room looking at my paintings on every wall, I am glad I have taken this leap.
