Yes, that’s right. As of next month I will be a full time blogger and social media consultant. *Cue excitement and uncontrollable jumping up and down.
*Closely followed by wide eyed fear and a little voice at the back of my head that is asking what the hell I just did?
Before I begin I should let you know that Iām not doing a classic travel blogger thing and āquitting my job to travel the worldā. Iām not ābreaking out of my cubicleā. Iām not a lawyer or a banker with a well paid but unfulfilling job that I feel like I need to escape from. In some ways I wish I was. That would have made the decision easier!
You see, I love my job in social media. I work as the social media executive for one of the worldās largest independent travel retailers. Itās a dream job.
But I’ve had a niggling feeling at the back of my mind for months now and I know I need to give it a go.
I will be travelling more. I will be blogging more. And I will be doing more of what I love which is helping small businesses to effectively use social media.
I blame it on all these inspirational quotes on Pinterest that tell me to create my own dreams, be the person I want to meet, dare to dream. Yadda yadda yadda. Youāve heard them all.
As I work in social media Iām bombarded with these quotes and I thought Iād become immune to them, even irritated by any update that began āThe world is a bookā¦.ā
But one day, my colleagues at gapyear.com placed this quote by Jack Kerouac on Facebook and I couldnāt stop thinking about it.
It stayed in my mind for weeks and made me feel uneasy as I saw the truth in it. Itās funny how some words will breeze over you without a second glance but others will hit a nerve and keep hitting it until all you can think about is climbing that goddamn mountain.
No matter how much I love my job, when Iām 90, am I going to remember all those years sat in the office, or will I remember the days I spent at the top of the mountain?
So after months of consideration, Iāve decided to put my walking boots on and start climbing.
What next?
I’m travelling a fair bit over the next few months. I’m going to Iceland, a yoga retreat, two trips to Dublin and lots of exciting European trips which I’ll tell you more about soon.
I’m staying on as a freelancer at Flight Centre, working with a few start-ups and also launching a new blog which will be ready very soon. It looks like freelancing is going to be very busy, very exciting and very rewarding but watch this space to find out more.
Why now?
This is the first question people ask me when I tell them Iām going freelance. It was also the question I was asking other freelancers when I made the decision. You want to know if there is some kind of trigger that suddenly makes up your mind.
In all honesty, it was something I knew I would do eventually so I thought, āwhy not now?ā
I am young but it means I have no responsibilities. I have no mortgage to pay, no one relying on me and I donāt really have anything to lose.
But, more importantly, Iām more scared about not trying.
If there is one thing that scares me more than anything else in the world, itās growing old and regretting things. Or not even regretting things, itās more about forgetting things because theyāre unmemorable. I donāt want to have an unmemorable life. I think this is why I obsessively take photos of everything, I just donāt want to forget anything.
I always remember my dad telling me that the years fly by and with each year you grow older the time goes even faster. Iām not worried about growing old but I am worried about being filled with regret and unfulfilled wishes. So like the lovely lady in this picture says, ‘at least I tried’.
Love this! I just decided to do the same thing and I’m a little nervous but it’s quite exhilarating at the same time. I wish you the best of luck!!
Good luck to you too Christina. It would be great to hear how you get on too!
Great post, I agree with all you said. I wish you all the best for you freelancing career.
Regards,
Stef
Thanks so much Stef!
This is so exciting! I’m really happy for you. It takes a lot of courage to do what you’re doing, just remember that š
Thanks Jessica, I really appreciate the support š
Wow, go you. A very inspirational read, particularly for a Monday! I hope you enjoy every step up that ‘mountain’
Hehe, I think we all need a bit of inspiration on a Monday morning don’t we!
CONGRATULATIONS!!! Now the question is; Can I have your job?!’ Joke, joke. But seriously, well done I’m sure you’ll do fabulously and I look forward to seeing your next adventures unfold!!
Katie <3
Hehe, well they will be recruiting soon! It’s a great job and I’m sure I’ll be putting any links out of social media soon.
So proud of and excited for you! š xx
Thanks Bevvers! It’s great to have so many bloggers friends who all know what it’s like š
Wahoo! You explain so well the complexities and reasoning behind going freelance. I never even got it that clear in my own head before doing so.
You’re going to be great. Enjoy climbing that mountain xx
It took me hours to write that post and I think that was the problem – I needed to sort it out in my head why I was actually doing it in the first place. In my head I knew it was going to be better but I couldn’t quite figure out how or why!
Awesome news š Good luck with the new direction, hopefully see you at the next meet up!
Thanks Hayley š Looking forward to seeing you soon – probably around all the WTM madness!
Good for you! Considering I’ve been working freelance the whole time I’ve been travelling, I guess you’d say I’m a freelancer, although I never thought of myself as that until just now! That said, I know that even when I stop travelling, I want to work for myself, as scary as that may be. Good luck with everything!
I think that if you’ve been freelancing for years it would be scarier to go and work for a company. Well done on making it work for so long!
Wish you all the best in going freelance. I am sure its a great move and you will do well. Great to know you are going on a yoga retreat, sounds interesting.
Thanks Shalu. Yes, I can’t wait for the yoga retreat. I think I’m going to need it to chill out soon!
Congratulations! This sounds amazing. I’d love to be a freelancer, but I don’t even know where to start!
Thanks Annabel. I was like that about a year ago but slowly started to learn and get my head around everything I’ll need to do. Once I started researching I couldn’t stop and knew it was the right thing to do.
Wow, great decision, congrats! It’s inspiring to read your story. Congrats for following your dreams, in stead of just pinning them to a Pinterest board š Good luck and enjoy!
Thanks Natasja! I think I’ll still be pinning but hopefully I’ll be ‘doing’ too.
Great decision! I am also in the same boat. I mean I have also quit my job and delved into full time freelancing. It’s wonderful to do what you are made to do!
It’s so great to hear from other people in the same position. How are you finding it?
Good for you Monica and huge congrats! Regardless of knowing what you want to do with your life it takes guts to do something like this, best of luck š
Go girl! Huge congratulations – I feel sure it won’t be a decision you ever regret. Enjoy hitting those mountains š
Am I the only male on here making a comment? Good grief! Am I on the wrong site? Maybe time for gender reassignment!
Best of luck with your new journey Monica. It’s really heroic to jack in a job and say ‘fuck it…I’m free’. I hope that you can now travel more freely (without static work constraints) and look forward to your trip.
Best of luck with everything.
Thanks Mark! It’s great to have some male support on here too!
Good choice, live your dream! Look forward to following your adventures. Goodluck!
Congratulations! Best decision you could make! I’m confident you’re going to be awesome, no matter what you do. Enjoy and hope to hear more soon!
Ah! This is so exciting- congratulations! Sounds like you’re living my dream š Good for you, girlfriend! I know you’ll be so successful and have the time of your life. š
Congratulations, pretty lady! I am so excited for you š
xo,
Lela – http://www.lelalondon.com
Go you! Keep climbing that mountain and best of luck!
Good on you, and good luck!
Congrats Monica! Being your own boss must be an amazing feeling– I’m sure you’ll do amazing. Enjoy climbing that mountain! š
You know the climb up the mountain is a never-ending one right? It makes the journey MUCH more fun š
Wow ! Now here Freelance means that you can enjoy your life in your own style of working . Work and fun together . Best of luck . I wish i can also have this type of life š
It’s a tough road (tougher than the people who just sort of shout “Live your dreams! It’s easy!” But if it’s ever going to happen, it’s only because you gave it a go. There’s no other way.
Thanks š Yes, I’m really conscious of all the people across the internet who are encouraging people to live their dreams. Sometimes it’s not that simple but we’ll see how I get on.
Congrats, Monica! Taking the plunge is the hardest part – now it’s time to really explore and enjoy.
Good luck and can’t wait to see your posts on Iceland.
Congrats on the big and exciting decision! I’m sure you’ll do great, and like you said, you will never look back and wish you had spent more time in a cubicle.
Thanks Ali. Definitely, you’ve got to try everything once. If you don’t like it, you don’t need to do it forever.
Just found your blog and I love it! Congrats on your freelancing adventure, can’t wait to follow along. (Those inspirational quotes get me every time too!)
Thanks Heather, I’m glad I’m not the only one who is a sucker for inspirational quotes š
Best of luck with it, i’m sure it’ll be brilliant!
Thanks Kate!
Congratulations on your decision! You’re sure to be quite successful… (And you’ll have lots of fun too…)
Thanks! The fun bit is at the top of my priorities list so fingers crossed!
Only just seen this and I am so pleased for you. How exciting! I’m looking forward to following your the next step of your journey. Enjoy! š
Thanks Kat! I really appreciate the support I’m getting from so many lovely bloggers.
Congrats! That’s such a huge and awesome decision to make. I wish you the very best of luck!
Thanks so much Katie. I’m one week into the world of freelancing and I’m loving it so far. Don’t think I’ve ever been so busy!
Awesome! Congrats! I made the full-time switch last month and it is amazing š
Congrats to you too then! Are you enjoying the freelance life?
Congrats Monica, very exciting/brave! Funny that you are busier than ever, having ‘quit a job’, I have heard quite a few people say the same thing š
I know, I don’t think I’ve ever been busier! I’m loving what I’m doing though so I really don’t mind. I’m sure that one day I’ll have real weekends back in my life again!
Exciting! Welcome to the freelancing world! I’m sure you will do great.
Thanks Christy! So far so good, I think!
I have just read his post and even though it’s been already a couple of months since you quit your full-time job I’m just writing to wish you good luck! Happy 2014, hopefully your freelancing work will bloom this year!
Hi Irene, thank you so much! It has been a few months and so far it’s going really well. It’s lovely to have the freedom to work when and where I like and work on some really exciting projects.
I hope you have a fantastic 2014!
Yaay for you!
Can’t believe I missed this post.
I’ve actually taken the step as well, well, partially. As of January 1 I officially have a side-gig!
Wishing you all the best!
I now have a side-gig too. I think you need a small one to keep yourself sane otherwise you’re always chasing new work and not really getting a lot of actual work done. I like having a side gig that I know will pay the rent each month and then I’m free to work on really fun and creative projects without worrying too much about money!
So how is it all going!?
I’ll be writing an update soon but to cut a very long story short, it’s going brilliantly!
I’m very busy but I’ve found a great mix of busy travel weeks and chilled out weeks working from home and I love it.
So how’d the freelance work out for you? Been reading your blog with interest for a while now.
Just starting out myself with my own travel blog, so I try to get as much information about what I’m up against, the successes and shortcomings that people encounter.
I hope your well Monica and still travelling safely!
all the best /Wilfy
I’ll be writing an update on freelancing soon Wilfys.I’ve been trying to write it for a while but things change and grow so quickly that I keep needing to edit it.
Things are going really well. I love the freedom and creativity involved but it can also be stressful.
The update post should be coming soon!
Good for you! Can’t wait to see the new blog!
It sounds like you already had a few ongoing gigs lined up which have meant you can take the leap into freelancing and still feel fairly secure? Would be great to hear more as you start up freelancing as to how you manage to maintain it, how to build relationships with companies which give you a little more security than just pitching every time etc.
Look forward to hearing more!
Harri
Good luck – I really hope it works out for you, you’re really inspiring! I love that Jack Kerouac quote – it’s so true. And like you say – you’re young, no mortgage or responsibilities and I can’t imagine anything worse than growing old and always thinking ‘what if I had…’
Go girl!! x
Victoria Ellen Lee recently posted: How to survive The Full Moon Party: Koh Phangan, Thailand
The ‘what if I had…’ thought pretty much inspires me to do everything! Thanks Victoria š