Jude is approaching the end of her PhD. and suddenly the calls are coming in thick and fast - asking her to interview all over the States and possibly all over the world. Of course this ought to raise questions like "is there anything for Steve to do in these far flung places?" and "Do you really want to live in Lubbock, TX?" but right now it doesn't. Any move is about a year away and a lot can happen in a year.
I think that I'm at a stage where I can live anywhere and still manage to get work - even if it's freelance. It may mean a cut in salary but hey if that means that I get to walk the dog along the beach and allow the cats outside again then I'm pretty happy. Money is nice but I just need enough for it not to be a problem. I'm not into the whole salary escalation thing - if that's how you define success then you're kinda narrow. I know - I was virtually two dimensional at one point.
Actually that last point isn't true. I've never moved job for more money. In fact I've always taken a pay cut when I've moved. But I've either moved because I knew I'd learn more elsewhere, because I needed a challenge, because I saw potential or - most recently - because I needed to be in a country long enough for my wife to finish up her PhD.
What I find compelling about a change of lifestyle is that we are all now showing signs of stress. Jude with a back more knotted than an amnesiac's handkerchief, Velcro with her bi-monthly stomach upsets, Ink with his highly strung UTIs and of course me with my 'up at 6am to start on the e-mail' sessions.
Whatever we decide to do I think that a more relaxed attitude to life. More time in the sunshine. More time with the sand between our toes. More time doing what we want to do and less doing what we don't.
I have an idea of working for agencies / ideas companies on 4 pitches a year. A month each pitch - a fee plus win bonus on each. Then I'd do four months writing - I want to do an advertising book. And four months in the sun during the summer. It's actually quite a do-able idea.
The dogs above btw are Bearded Collies and they're on a beach in Victoria, BC, Canada. Which would be nice.
1 comment:
Hi Steve
The idea of packing all your work into four months is a good one - but it rather optimistically requires the customers to be out there at the time to suit you.
I had a similar idea once upon a time to be a bookshop development consultant; ten grand to find a site, do the fit and buying, and the initial train up. Looked good until I realised Oxfam had someone internal doing it already. Tant pis...
And while I'm sure you could beat them off [in the sense of having a plethora of choices, not masturbating wildly] at any time, it's never that simple. Life ain't Lego, is it?
All the best mate,
Drew Mishmash
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