FREEDOM
Getting Fired on New Year’s Eve Is the Best Gift (Yet) for My Freedom
When we don’t follow our gut feeling, it inevitably gets back at us in multiple ways.
Multiple income streams are not luxury; they are necessary to ensure you’re not dependent on a single source to start your financial freedom journey. The concept felt more applicable when I got fired from my first job within seven months of joining.
If I rewind to the day I received the bomb email in my junk folder, it is 31 December 2019, and the inflicted existential crisis was off the charts.
Fast forward to the present, leaving my blanket of security was the best thing to happen for my freedom. I had a decent remote job while working 9 to 5, so the mental recovery was there for sure, but it took a little longer because the remote job took time to pay well.
Now when I see my story in hindsight, multiple income streams are not an option; they are necessary to ensure you don’t let one person or organisation control your work-life choices.
Apart from highlighting the value of multiple income streams, here are three more ways my historical lay-off was a blessing in disguise.
#1. Define your freedom.
Once you experience the freedom of controlling your time, there is no turning back.
With flexible work hours in my remote job and zero meetings, I have so much time for myself that I have to plan my schedule. Otherwise, the absence of self-accountability eats my productivity.
Your definition of freedom might look different than taking back control of your time. For me, it was about prioritising my well-being over fleeting rewards.
I suffered from congenital asthma. There was no reason to torture my lungs further by working extended hours in the race to become a model employee.
#2. Infinite possibilities.
If you don’t leave your comfort zone, life will force you to do it anyway.
When we don’t listen to our gut, it inevitably gets back at us in multiple ways.
I knew I wasn’t getting any happier at my desk job. But I was such a pussy that I couldn’t muster the courage to resign from my willpower.
Getting fired was like an overdue event I already saw coming. But when I finally got plenty of time to invest in my dreams after flying on my own, the creative pursuits showed me infinite possibilities to harness my brain: the most powerful — and complex — human asset.
I started frequently writing on Medium. I started fitness accountability challenges on Instagram. I recently started vlogging on IG to strengthen my storytelling skills and kill the camera anxiety.
#3. Don’t procrastinate on your dreams.
I didn’t know I wanted to be a writer. But when I lost my job, my heart found shelter in the warmth of writing. I started a 100-day writing challenge.
Once my few articles surpassed my expectations regarding views, the jolt of motivation inspired me to use my English communication skills to become an excellent storyteller.
Now I write almost four articles weekly, and it doesn’t feel like a mission anymore. It feels like play.
You never know when your dreams will lift you. If you can invest enough time daily to work ( and fight ) for your goals, you’ll never go wrong by betting on yourself.
Closing thoughts
I barely had anyone supporting my decision not to return to a desk job because everyone was busy with their lives and didn’t want to give earnest advice about my career.
The same thing will happen if you plan to outgrow your environment by doing something no one has done before. It’s human nature to resist change in the starting. It makes us feel safe.
“A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.”
— John A. Shedd, Salt from My Attic, 1928
But once you understand that adaptability makes the power of change work for you, you’ll start seeing every experience as a stepping stone towards manifesting your dreams.
Here is a recap of the benefits you’ll reap by going all out:
- Live your definition of freedom.
- Explore the infinite possibilities by harnessing the creative potential of the brain.
- Don’t procrastinate on your dreams.
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Sanjeev is a mentor, writer, and fitness enthusiast from India. He writes about lifelong learning, personal growth, and positive psychology. When he’s not engaging with students in solving their doubts or busy writing, he’s sweating either in a workout, vlogging or playing with his cat, Jim. You can also find him on Instagram and Twitter.
