My life in SF: shepherding engineers and unsatisfying bougie consumption
Q: Where will you be when your quarter-life crisis hits?
My quarter life crisis came near the end of the two year PM program I joined upon graduation. I alternated between feeling hyper-stressed and bored at work.
In college, I had been able to do well at school and still have time for art — I had, for example, gone to the projects in bed-stuy with my photography teacher to help her do a shoot with a former stripper. But my life as a professional in SF consisted mostly of shepherding engineers and unsatisfying bougie consumption (brunches, shopping, status-symbol fitness activities).
I had stagnated and felt unexcited about what I was doing in the world. So I broke up with my boyfriend of just under a year (I realized I’d rather be single as I figured myself out). Then I hustled to get an internal internship at my company as a designer, so I could see what it was like to work as a creative. When I found out the company wasn’t going to offer me a design position, I quit my job. I spent the next two months traveling from country to country until I circled the globe and came back to SF. Along the way I fell for somebody, helped my grandma write her memoir, and started creating art I was excited about again.
Once back in SF, I took the time to take care of all the non-career parts of my life: family, friendships, intimacy, creativity, and my health. But there was still something missing: a community I truly vibed with. I wanted to be among people who shared my values and motivated me to produce my best work. So I moved to New York for a test run of life in a city where culture and art thrived.
It’s been ten months since I started this journey, and I’m working as a contract consultant & designer for start-ups while still figuring out what I’ll do long term and where I’ll live. But I’ve never been happier or felt more in control. I’m glad I was confident enough to take a step back and invest the time to make important decisions and bring focus to my life.
Thinking back on the way I’ve moved through the world, I’m certain now that I’ll navigate with little predictability between disparate places, people, and kinds of work for the rest of my life.
I can’t wait to see where that takes me.
— Luke, 24, NYC
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