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July 23 2010
Questions You Should Ask Before You Quit Your Day Job [Jobs]
"Don't quit your day job" may be a running joke for folks who enjoy but can't necessarily make money from their passion, but how do you decide when quitting your day job is actually a viable option?
Personal finance blog Get Rich Slowly offers a few thoughtful suggestions for determining whether or not you're ready to quit your day job. For example:
Chasing a dream isn't for everyone. There are plenty of people who prefer the stability and security of a job. Many creative, interesting, passionate people like the advantages of a steady paycheck, good benefits, and the ability to leave work behind at the end of the day.
Before you consider quitting your day job to follow your passions, ask yourself:
- How comfortable am I taking a risk with my livelihood?
- Am I willing to maintain a business?
- How will I handle the business management aspects of my new career?
- Do I want to do this all day, every workday, or will that strip the joy from it?
- Will my family and friends support this move?
In all, it's a well-reasoned post that delves far beyond those questions to discuss further realities, suggesting, for example, taking your dream job for a test job (it may not be as great as you expected). The post is written with your financial health in mind, but also keep in mind that sometimes quitting your day job—even when you don't have "substantial savings built up to cover the financial risk of quitting your regular job"—is a risk worth taking. (I never would've ended up at Lifehacker if I'd followed that advice.) Whether or not you agree with every piece of advice, it's a worthwhile read if you're considering leaving your 9-to-5. Photo by Y.
April 24 2010
Success or Failure, Examine What Went Wrong and Right [Mind Hacks]
Looking at past mistakes, it's tempting (and helpful) to figure out what went wrong. Psychologist Ian Newby-Clark of Psychology Today writes that instead of just reflecting on what went wrong, we shouldn't forget to focus on what went right.
Photo by place light - flying not physically.
Newby-Clark argues that even though it makes sense to figure out our mistakes, we can neglect to see how things went right. Focusing on those items gives people a sense of achievement and satisfaction, two things that should not be undervalued in their own right.
[S]ometimes, just sometimes, things go right. When things go right we are, of course, happy. Also, we feel the need to get on with the next thing. We want to focus on what's not working and fix that.
I suggest, though, that reflecting on what went right is just as important as determining what went wrong. Here's a great question, called a counterfactual by us social psychologists: How could things have turned out differently? How might you have failed? Kind of strange to think that way. But productive.
It's a good bit to keep in mind next time things go wrong, or well, right.
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