I’m officially done! I’m throwing in the towel, tapping out, waving the white flag. Stick a fork in me I am D-O-N-E done. I am done with working for other people.
I am finished working dead end jobs. I am done working for horrible bosses. I am done working my ass off to be paid the bare minimum. It’s like for years employers have inadvertently said, “Yes I am paying only the minimal amount because that’s all you’re worth to me and that labor laws require.”
I am worth so much more than minimum wage, but for many years, that’s the type of employment I’ve held. I had lots of great employers and enjoyed my jobs for the most part. I attained lots of work and life experience, elevated my work ethic, advanced my work skills, and learned to work hard by working as a dish washer, prep cook, line cook, hotel room attendant, residential cleaner, airport security guard, convenience store clerk, dietary aid, and retail sales associate. I don’t regret those jobs, but have reached a turning point in my life where I realized that this is not where I expected to be at 43, so I want more.
It’s exhausting looking for jobs and seeing the same establishments posting the same dead end ad postings. I am tired of seeing the prices of food products and gas increase meanwhile my hourly wages remain the same. I want more than to work for hourly wages with no benefits, no paid vacation, no paid sick days and no pension plan.
I no longer want to work at jobs where if the business suddenly closed down (and yes that has happened to me before) that I would be out of a job. I am physically and mentally done. I don’t want to be working in my late sixties or until I die. There has to be a better way to earn enough money to put towards retirement, and one where I feel a sense of personal gratification, meaning, and purpose.
I don’t want to work anymore with supervisors that are half my age for fear that one day their children would one day be my supervisor. I am fed up of applying for hundreds of jobs to receive not one response to my applications. I am discouraged of going to interviews where employers expect be to provided with more than three job references for part time work that pays minimum wage.
I am annoyed with going to job interviews where employers expect 24/7 availability for a 15 hour work week. I am frustrated with employers having that much control over my financial situation and my life. I want more control over my own destiny.
I want to start my own business and work for myself. I want that freedom that Kevin O’Leary, also known as Mr. Wonderful mentioned on an episode of Dragon’s Den, which was that he could afford to quit a job tomorrow and there wouldn’t be anything the employer could do about it. How exactly do I accomplish obtaining that freedom so greatly desired?
Perhaps I could start up a business. I come from a family of entrepreneurs, so it’s in my blood; therefore, it should be easy right? I don’t believe for one second that starting up a business is easy. My Grandparents had a business and so did my Mom. My uncles and my sister are also entrepreneurs.
I used to be quite the entrepreneur when I started babysitting at 12 years old. I earned enough from my weekend babysitting gigs that I bought my first Nintendo Entertainment System. I know times have changed since earning $2 bucks an hour back in 1987; however, maybe that 12 year old entrepreneur is still there somewhere.
In less than a month from now I will be 44 years old. Twenty years ago I never thought I would be considering either a career change or pursuing one in general at 43. I just figured that I would go to university and after finishing that a career would naturally happen. To say that I was wrong is an understatement. I don’t think I am the only one in this age group who has experienced similar thoughts and situations.