The first 17 years after college, I followed a traditional career path for a person graduating with a Finance major. I worked for large corporations, came to work early, stayed out late several times a month entertaining clients, dropped everything for last minute out-of-town work trips, picked up an MBA along the way, made enough to live comfortably doing fun things in big cities, and then I hit a wall. On the eve of turning 40, I was exactly where I should have been on my master career plan. I was coloring inside the lines. I took every promotion that was offered without regard to where I’d have to move (e.g., opening a map of New Jersey to search for my new “home town”), what the job entailed, or distance from family and friends. And, I was miserable.
Thankfully, with the support of my amazing husband, I was at a point where I could step back, recalibrate, and switch directions. Aside from the fact that I still live in a big city, my life today reflects nothing of what I described above. Maybe because of that old life, I resist nearly every offer to color inside the lines. While not following a structured path is liberating, there are trade-offs that mostly have to do with money and a nice job title. Also, it makes my answer to “What do you do?” much longer than the person expected for a bit of small talk. However, I wouldn’t switch places with my old self for all the money in the world.