Why I Quit Corporate Life and Started a Blog
Family.
That one word says it all. I want to spend more time being with the people I enjoy spending time with. Enjoying life. Making a difference in my daughter’s daily activities because life is too short.
Was it easy to quit? Not at all! It was 2 years in the making. In 2015, Kevin and I started talking about it. He said he would support me in whatever path I chose. But, it was still difficult. After all, I had been working for 32 years.
The past 25 years (ouch, that’s a long time) I worked in Information Technology. I was a developer, Business Analyst, Scrum Master, technical lead and manager. My career had its ups and downs like I assume many do. However, when I left, I really enjoyed my job. That was the hard part. I had a lot of friends at work, I was good at what I did (well, at least I thought so anyway) and I had a solid reputation.
I kept postponing my resignation. Part of it was because of the paycheck and part of it was because I was really scared. Scared because I have always had a job. Scared because of the unknown. My mind likes solid, concrete things. Quitting my job put me in unfamiliar territory that made my stomach turn.
However, I also realized that life is short, life is fleeting. I want to spend it doing things that have real meaning to me. I want to experience all the world has to offer with my husband and daughter by my side.
Kevin joked around that miles and points have been my part-time job. My RSS feed is completely from miles and points gurus. This is my daily reading since 2013. I learn what to do to travel for (almost) free. Who knew there was this whole society out there! While I was primarily the one signing up for credit cards, Kevin would oblige when I asked him too as well. After all, two people earning points accumulated them faster.
I love talking about trips, miles and points and I can literally go on and on for hours. I was thinking about starting a blog for a number of years. Really, it was just to document our journeys. Then, I started thinking that I could help other people do the exact same thing I was doing.
That’s how I want to be different with my blog. While the blogs I read outline credit cards and tell you their features and benefits, I want to give you examples of trip planning and using specific credit cards to make it come true. I want to show you exactly how I plan a trip and what cards I use to make it happen. Trip highlights, our hotel and child-friendly activities will also be a part of this blog.
My overall goal is to be a travel writer some time down the road. A family travel writer. I don’t have any thoughts yet on how to start that. Hopefully, blogging will release some creative juices to get that started.
I was very lucky to receive 5 weeks paid vacation per year at my last employer. I started there with 5 weeks which is something you don’t hear too often. Because of that, we travelled extensively. Little TFT has been to Europe, Asia, Mexico, Canada and countless states in the US. It has been a blessing that I teach her we don’t take for granted. We are very lucky.
I quit my corporate job in June 2017 and spent an incredible summer with my daughter. It’s the first time I have been able to do that since she was always in daycare while I worked.
I have so many plans. My mind races with all the things I want to do now. I would love to ‘worldschool’ my daughter, but I’m not sure that will happen.
For now, I’m enjoying the change. Will I always? I don’t know. None of us knows where life will take us. But, we need to seize any opportunities we have. My husband gave me this big one. For that, I am completely grateful.
Now, you will either find me on my computer either typing away and learning more about the blogging world or at my daughter’s school where I volunteer one day a week helping in the lunch room. It gives me a chance to peek into her school life and give her a quick kiss during the day while she still lets me.
If you want to connect, say hi, or have any questions please send me a message via the Contact page.