Whether you’re currently underemployed or have made it out the other side, you never know what could come down the road to affect your life. An economic downfall could make your dream job your worst nightmare. One chance meeting could see you moving to the other side of the planet to begin a new life. The world could see your profession as dated and unnecessary, so goodbye dreams!
For these reasons, I’ve thought long and hard about my New Year’s resolution. Not only does it apply to my work, ensuring that underemployment does not haunt my every waking moment, but I hope it will also advance my personal life.
As a Brit, I watch my friends and family live their lives through the concept of No. That one tiny, universally acknowledged, evil, son of a bitch term has dictated the entire lifeline of those I love and cherish. It could be as simple as hearing it, forcing you to give up on an idea. It could be your inner demons hissing it at you as you lie down to sleep at night. Maybe it was a high school teacher, or even an elementary school teaching assistant, that scoffed at your dreams. Believing in No, will leave you on your death bed, regretting all of the things you failed to do.
I’m big campaigner against No. When I turned 18, I had a big party at my house. All of my friends and family were invited. Looking back on it, this was the turning point for me. It was a rough point in my life, and I knew I had to change something or I’d end up killing myself. That night, a night that my family still rave about with glee, was actually fucking dreadful.
I won’t go into too many details, but let’s just say several fist fights occurred in the weeks after, enemies were enforced in steel and bone (and yes, I think it is good to have enemies, but that’s a story for another week), and a drastic choice was made changing the way I make every decision I’ve made ever since.