What. A. Month. I need a second to catch my breath before we get underway with the second half of June! Just to recap, a few months ago we quit our day jobs to build our dream jobs. We picked up our lives and moved back to Arkansas. We left a safe, comfortable career in order to pursue our passions. Life as a freelancer sounded good, and also terrifying. I worried over whether we’d made the right decision and June brought me this beautiful, loud answer: “YES!”
We leapt, and now we really are enjoying the fall. I’m working to get caught up on posts and learning and planning, but I’m also working hard to remind myself that not everything can get done all at one time. There’s a lot to do, but it’s important to enjoy where I’m at, you guessed it: in-between. Rather than stressing too much about how much I want to do, I’m taking a moment to look at how far we’ve come. Pretty dang far! Here’s a look at what June brought:
We went to Colorado
There’s a lot more to come on this particular topic, but we made it back to our favorite little mountain town to explore more than we had the time to last fall. We went rafting with some good friends, got Kona on a paddle board for the first time, and even logged some trail miles. We’d been looking forward to a real vacation since before Christmas and this trip really hit the spot.
I started a new job
You may be wondering, “Um, what happened to life as a freelancer and working for yourself?” That’s the coolest thing about this position! I get to do that, too! When I reached out to a college professor to see if she knew anyone I should reach out to for writing opportunities she gave me the contact for the owner of a media company here in Northeast Arkansas. We hit it off talking about writing and business and travel, then a sales position became available and Dina called me first thing.
I hesitated. But when she decided to hire a full-timer and let me work part-time, I knew it was too good to pass up. Working part-time for MOR Media Inc. allows me to make enough to support myself and learn the ropes in the industry I want to be a part of while also allowing for plenty of time to focus on writing. I’m also writing for their magazine, Premiere.
Plus, if I’m being honest, after just four weeks working from home I was feeling like I needed to get out more. I’m a social person. I need interaction with other people to “re-charge”. Without that, I was feeling less creative and lacking inspiration.
Let this be another reminder that sometimes leaving what’s comfortable is absolutely terrifying: How will I pay the bills?! But if we’re too afraid to hop off the safe path we’ve become so comfortable walking, we may never land the opportunity that will propel us forward to our dreams.
In-between became a column
I won’t say too much about this, but here’s a sneak peek:
“What are you up to these days? What are you doing now?” These natural questions arose when I went back home to volunteer at a high school track meet. I ran a lot of laps on that track, I thought. I spent a lot of afternoons on this infield. I recall how anxious I was before the start of each race, and now I can’t remember which ones I won and which ones I didn’t.
Nervous laughter precedes my response to the inquiries.
Now go read it! And let me know what you think in the comments below.
We’re launching our AirBnB
Whoop whoop! We’ve got an extra bedroom in our house with a private entrance that we’ve been working to get ready to rent out in order to help us cover the cost of living in this beautiful house that Jackson’s dad owns. This setup is perfect because it helps us live cheap (more money for travel!) while still being extremely comfortable in a spacious home.
Also, I love being a host. I enjoy making a space cozy and welcoming guests. I even like cleaning. And, maybe we’ll meet some perfect candidates to interview for the blog. Win, win, win.
More than anything, I hope this is a reminder that life throws us all kinds of good things, unexpected things, stressful things, etc. What’s important is to embrace where you’re at and keep making your way towards where you want to be. For me, life as a freelancer is every bit as overwhelming as I expected, but I’m loving every second of it. Alright, maybe not every second, but most of them…
Ever thought about trying to work for yourself? What is it you want to do? Have you already leapt, or are you still just glancing over the edge? Like me, you might be in-between the big decision and your landing zone. Or, you might be in-between your comfort zone and the leap itself. Like many, you’re scared of taking the plunge. Check out the archives to learn more about this community of “in-betweeners” and comment below so we can show you some support!