It’s a question my boss asked me today, amid a discussion about my wages and responsibilities. In this instance, it's directed at people in the twenty-or-so range, such as myself, who seem discontented with their current life directions/accomplishments....such as myself.
I’ve been a paraoptometric (eye doctor) assistant for over a year and a half now. When I started my job, I had little-to-no experience in a clinic setting. Totally broke, new to the city, and desperate for work, I feel that I lucked out finding the opening I did.
Now, I’m making more than I ever have, with good benefits and bonuses each quarter. I even like the work I do everyday. Being a technician is challenging in the best way. No day is the same. You have a pretty high level of responsibility (depending on the doctor you work for) and it’s a good feeling to be helping people in such a measurable way (getting a child into glasses for the first time or catching a life threatening tumor). I have really loved the work that I’ve done over the last year— and yet, I’ve been thinking about leaving.
My definition of success has changed. Maybe it was watching @AustinHopper start his own business, but I’ve suddenly realized how much my financial stability relies on working to make somebody else wealthy. The amount of money I make for my clinic as an employee is more than 400X what I make in wages, if not more. I am working to make someone else (my boss) rich. That’s just how most companies work.
I’ve decided that I don’t want my financial success to be determined by how many hours I clock in for someone else. Am I sounding like a typical Millennial yet?
Breaking out of the life-sucking 9-5 has actually been shown to reduce anxiety, boost productivity and improve overall mental health. As someone who loves hiking, it's absolute torture to be stuck in the clinic every Monday-Friday. The weekend finally rolls around and I get less 34 hours of daylight to do anything. In a year and a half, I've barely experienced the amazing hiking there is in Washington state.
I can't afford to quit my job and travel. Student loans, car payment, etc., it would leave me broke and back to square one in a matter of months. I'm not even sure that I want to be a full time traveler. It sounds exhausting in a way. But that doesn't mean I want to only travel once a year, like, a week in Asia, either. SO if I can position myself to be making money remotely or even semi-remotely, then I can travel when I would like to without having to push a reset button on my savings account or my career.
Every human being deserves to use their brain to think critically each and everyday if they want to. We are not mean to sit at a desk and type words and attend meetings and die. While there is an element of responsibility to my job that I enjoy, at the end of the day, there is really only so much of my brain that I have to use during the day. I'm not moving toward some elite status of eye-exam-giver that would make my position something to dedicate my life to. I want my opinions to matter and carry weigh. I need to see my decisions impact the world around me in a positive and productive way.
I think I'm finally ready to jump into the world I ran away from after college (I have a degree in Public Relations, collecting dust.). This time, instead of join an agency or corporate position, I'll be calling the shots and working with clients I can feel good about. I can have the three things I defined as success by going this route.
Luckily, with Marketing and PR consulting, I don't need a loan for any supplies or equipment. The first months/year will be about growing my client list organically from the connections I already have. I will probably continue working full time for now too, until I become profitable to take the self-employed leap. It will take time and a lot of coffee, but the freedom it will offer will be worth it!
Are you self-employed or a small business entrepreneur? I would love to hear your story. Right now I'm in the soak up information stage of all this.
