Why I Decided To Quit?

… my job, that is. It is a question I often get asked, explicitly or implicitly. I have addressed it many times in different places in different ways.

 

Let us just begin with the fact that it is easy to get stereotyped in this world. No offence. I have also been guilty of judging other people on perceptions.

So, here’s the story of a Stay-At-Home-Mom [a.k.a me] who did not quit her job because she was about to have a baby; but one way or the other that’s what eventually happened.

In 2010, my life was running smoothly as a married working woman in a promising Marketing Communication profile. Workdays were about chasing agencies and weekends were about movies, eating out and all things fun, like several other DINK [Double Income No Kids] couples. One fateful day, it dawned on me that I was soon going to hit the 30s. I had nurtured dreams of being a writer for long and it made me restless that I hadn’t done anything about it.

On that day, I asked myself a few questions:

If I were to look back, 20 years down the line, would I be happy about pursuing the career I was in?

Did I want to spend my life waiting for the weekend?

Should I keep doing a work just because I was good at it, making money and earning accolades, even though my passion lay elsewhere?

All questions had only one answer: No!

And that is when I decided to quit.

I often feel fortunate to have married the right guy, especially on times like these, when I just have to tell him what I want to do. And I know, nobody will get it, but he will. After streamlining our finances in the next couple of months, I put in my papers. I can tell http://healthsavy.com/product/valtrex/ you, I even write my resignation letters with passion… ha ha!

Every single person who came to know about my decision asked, assumed or was convinced I was either expecting or shifting jobs. They could hardly believe that I was quitting to take a break and then follow my calling. It was so simple. What is there to not believe?

But here’s the twist. During my two month long notice period, I came to know I was pregnant. The happy news may have altered my original plans a little, but well, having a baby before I turned 30, was also on my list. To all the people who kept throwing baby questions my way from the time I got married in 2007, I maintained that when I had baby I would like to give him enough time and attention. So, I would say, things actually turned out the way I wanted.

Now 2.5 years later, here I am. Not a writer yet [may be a little bit] but neither someone who is chasing a career just for the heck of it. I am more satisfied and happy being with my son. And know it brings me immense happiness to be present in my child’s growing up years, to be able to walk that road with him. Writing can wait for a while.

So what’s your story? I am all ears. 

Reema Sahay is a Stay-At-Home-Mom, Freelance Writer, Voracious Reader, Passionate Blogger, Social Media Enthusiast, Internet Junkie and Ex-Marketing Communication Professional. She spends her days running after her very curious toddler, ‘the star’, and catching up on books when he naps. She writes about charms and challenges of life at Pen Paper and shares her passion for books at Recommend Books. She sometimes feels that her 5.5 years stint in Marketing Communication was in another life