Why I Turned Down a 6-Figure Career
This past summer I had hit my 3 year mark as a practising family lawyer in Ontario. Since graduating law school my goals were focused on my career development, with very little focus on anything else. I believed once I had my dream job, experience, confidence, and respectable salary that “happiness” would come.
I was constantly told, life as a lawyer gets easier after 5 years. I wasn’t sure if that meant I would have enough experience by then that my job would become easier, or maybe I wouldn’t take things so personally anymore or the money became worth the stress by that point.While focusing on my career goals, my happiness reserve was severely unmaintained. With fleeting moments adding to my tank, I was mostly deferring my happiness to a time in the future when I had the home, career and salary to truly be happy. I had reached several of my career and financial goals, but I was still unfulfilled.
I couldn’t find happiness in my daily life and in the journey. While I was so focused on this 5 year mark, what I lost sight of, was creating habits now that will continue well beyond the 5 years. Habits that would create a life I was happy with. It dawned on me that once I reach my 5 year mark I still may not be any happier than I am now.
While looking at how far I had come and how grateful I am for what I have, I could not shake the feeling that my life will look exactly how it does right now for another 30 years if I continue this way. I did not want to keep waiting until I had the next thing to be happy. This is when I decided to shift my goals. My career goals are still just as important as ever, but I am no longer putting my happiness on the back burner.