Miserable Career Vs Living Simply

I was recently talking to a relative who was exhausted from her career job of being a middle school teacher. Sure, the benefits were nice - summers off, health care, 401K, etc. But the stress levels weren't worth it for her, and overall, she wasn't enjoying her life.

As a teacher, I have also had times where the job wasn't worth it. I love teaching. However, teaching at a school often involves much more than just classroom time. There are report cards, parent-teacher meetings, after school activities, faculty meetings, department meetings, unit planning, early mornings and late nights. At one job specifically, my income was decent but I was generally miserable.

So what did my friend and I do to fix our problems? For my friend, she quit her job and got a simple retail job at a health food store. Now, she enjoys her life again, and she says she'll never go back to her miserable career, despite a significant income cut. For me, I became a part-time teacher at a different school. To supplement my income, I teach guitar on the side and perform when possible.

Life is too short, in my opinion, to be miserable every day. Granted, the benefits are less, but I can buy my own health insurance and 401k if necessary. Most people earn more so they can spend more on a huge house, a nice car and expensive meals. But this rat race can quickly become exhausting.

Exiting the rat race involves one important step: Live Simply.

Instead of needing an oversized mansion, look for a small, comfortable home. Instead of buying a brand new BMW, look for a small, reliable car and a bike. Instead of dining on steak and lobster at 5 star restaurants, learn how to cook simple, plant-based meals. All of these things cost less so you can work less, doing the things that you love to do!

Part Time = Party Time

I've had many full time jobs throughout my life, and for the most part, I haven't been happy at them. Of course, food has to be bought and rent has to be paid. So for me, the best way to do this is to have part time jobs. Here are some of the advantages of working 1-3 part time jobs instead of just one full time job:

- Pursue your passions. Whenever I've had a full time job, I generally just want to relax (or collapse) after work. This made me depressed because I had no time or energy to pursue the things I'm truly passionate about. But once I settled on a part time job, I was able to use the extra time and energy to focus on being creative.
- Increase variety. I love teaching guitar. But teaching guitar full time can be exhausting. Once I found a part-time job in the morning, my guitar teaching in the evening became more enjoyable.
- Diminish unemployment fears. If you are working two part time jobs, there is less fear about losing either of those jobs, simply because you will always have one income to fall back on.
- Increase appreciation. I've heard that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I have found that this can also be true in the workplace. If you're spending 40 hours a week with someone, it's easy to become irritable towards that person. Cutting that time in half can work wonders on a relationship.
- Buy your own health insurance. This may sound like a negative more than a positive. However, many companies offer "one size fits all" health insurance plans. As a result, many people are working extra hours for extravagant health insurance plans that they don't really need. Yet as long as you're relatively healthy and don't smoke, there are many affordable health insurance options available. Some people even choose not having health insurance at all, though of course there is more risk involved with that decision.