I just had a friend reach out with a story to share.
This person is dealing with some real difficulty, (as many of us are,) but also grappling with the question of perhaps not being in the right profession/field, at the moment.
Obviously, I’ll share no details, but when I was asked if I had thoughts on career changes, I took a moment to consider how best to answer the question?
As writing for Sunshine and Olly is one of my primary stress-relief techniques, but also a form of art I truly love, this seemed like the way to go.
Especially as I was able to get a proper hill walk with the dogs this morning, given that the sun finally came back!
Driving into Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class with Amelie yesterday afternoon, I was officially convinced I might never see the sun again.
So of course the clouds broke, around 5pm, and it was glorious.
Just long enough for me to remember that when we’re trapped in unhealthy systems, or environments, it is really hard to solve problems, and figure out big picture ideas.
Just like people in Russia, Scandinavia, and Canada know their winters fuck with their sanity, we just lived through that, in a place that’s supposed to be one of the sunniest in the world.
The sun came back, and I want to use that positive energy to give an answer to my (anonymous) friend.
Artists are permanent shape-shifters.
Certainly when we’re {foolish?} enough to try to make a living out of being creative.
I’ve blogged enough over the years about that subject, so we’ll leave it alone.
If the specific question is how to make a career move, either laterally, or vertically, I think there are questions we can ask ourselves, and moves we can make, to enable decisions from a clear-sky perspective.
First of all, if a person knows they’ve been dealing with an inordinate amount of stress and difficulty, due to work/family/health problems, having kindness and compassion for oneself is a great first step.
If you’ve been eating a lot of shit lately, or have life-changing situations going on, accept that those things can and do change your life.
And often they suck!
So step one, figure out how to be kind to yourself, and get even the tiniest break to clear your head.
If you can’t take a break, double/triple down on investing in yourself.
If you like Yoga, take more classes. Or martial arts. Travel. Eating great food. Making art.
Just pour everything you have into trying to feel good about yourself.
Because we need that self-confidence to embrace change, when it’s heaped upon us.
Step two, once you’re feeling grounded, is to start asking questions.
What do I love to do?
What am I really good at?
How can I imagine spending my time to make money, but when I think about it, I get excited, and energized? (Not depleted, and depressed.)
What communities, when I see them out there on social media, or the mainstream media, seem like they’re offering things that I want and need in my life?
What skills am I doing, in my current job, that have a direct cross-over with other aspects of my industry, or another industry?
Do I like being around a certain type of person, (or a certain type of energy,) and where can I find people like that?
Am I living in the right city/community, for my personal wants and needs?
It’s a lot of questions, I know.
And I could keep going.
But this feels like the perfect way to get moving.
Knowing something is not working is the first step.
I wrote on Monday that I’d gone to Duke University, among the most prestigious and famous in the world.
I hated it.
And I was so miserable.
But it wasn’t until I figured out I was miserable, (as there was not a support system in place to help me sort it,) that I bumped into a person who had the answer.
He too, was miserable, and had found out he could take a semester off, because he had enough credits to still graduate on time.
Immediately, I knew that was for me, and I moved towards making it happen.
I skipped the first semester of my senior year, and moved to Taos for 9 months, because my parents had recently relocated here.
That decision changed the course of my life.
I believe if you’re a kind, compassionate, empathetic, warm-hearted, intelligent, self-aware, open-minded person: you deserve to be happy.
Nobody gets to be happy all the time, mind you, but if you realize that despite being a genuinely good person, you feel stuck, unappreciated, or worse…
It’s time to get unstuck.
Step one, take care of yourself, and get in the frame of mind to tackle the problem.
Step two, ask all the hard questions, and be willing to see yourself in a more positive light than the situation seems to be rewarding.
Step three, take a big leap, believing you can do it, and that your support system will help you as you try.
Catch you next week!
Sunshine and Olly 
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