Last week, I was offered a job at a different company than my current day job. To say that this new job included a boat load of money and perks, when compared to my current job, would be an understatement. I found myself torn over the possibilities of starting fresh at a new company, what I would do with all that money, and how my daily life would change....dramatically. It's that last point that tied my stomach in knots and kept me up at night for days.
You see, this new job was with the company I worked for several years ago. I left that company for VERY specific reasons. Yes, they pay well, but in return they are overly demanding of your time. I remember one manager fretting over the fact that part of his family vacation included a few days on a cruise ship without wi-fi. "I'll just have to pay for some sort of satellite modem," he said. Now I know I'm dating myself, but the main point is that this guy was genuinely worried about missing an important email - and yes, dear reader, this was the norm among all the workers!
So I paused and asked myself, "Do I really want to buy a one-way ticket on that Looney Tunes train to Crazy Town?" My evenings would be spent sending emails and catching up on work that I didn't have time to finish during normal working hours. Mornings, my usual writing time, would be spent talking with east coast contacts to expedite orders and get answers to technical questions. During the interview, my potential coworker stated that he wakes up to at least fifty-two emails each morning that he tries to answer before her goes into the office - are you kidding me?
Which all brought me to the questions: "Who would I become, if I took this job?" and "Do I really want to be that person?"
After hemming and hawing for a week, a dear friend gave me some good advice. Over beers and burgers he simply said, "Don't take the job. It's not worth it. It's not worth sacrificing your writing."
I finished my pint, tore up my ticket to Crazy Town, and for the first night in days I slept like the dead. My time and my writing are more important to me. Who would I become, if I took that job? Certainly NOT the person I truly want to be.
"Time (Clock of the Heart)" by Culture Club
Aaaahhh, Culture Club! Boy George in all his 80's, eyeshadowed glory. My best friend, Noel, dressed up as Boy George for Halloween in the fourth grade.Culture Club was on the front line of yet another British music invasion. This time, they were armed with fresh videos that seemed to stream constantly on MTV. Aaaaaahhhh, MTV - remember when all they used to play were music videos and live concert recordings???
Anyhow, check out this video and let me know what you think. I have to admit that when I watched it for this post I started laughing. Today was the first time that I noticed the fact that their backup singers are wearing clock faces around their necks. I'm from Ohio, so all this time I assumed they were wearing some wacky Amish-Quaker-Puritan costume. How that all related to time, I'll never know - and it doesn't matter, cause I was just as wrong as two left shoes! LOL!
"Time, won't give me time..."
Gag gift - Homicide Murder Board, complete with red string, I made for a friend's birthday. Nope, I wouldn't have time for such projects if I'd taken that job. |