Save Yourself

This past week has dealt me some unexpected low blows.

I was let go from my job.

I lost a client.

This puts me in a pretty different situation than I thought I would be in.

The natural reaction would be to panic.

I have rent, a car, and myself to pay for.

But, in full honesty, I'm not worried.

In a way, you could say that I've future-proofed myself.

Over the years, I've made money in a number of ways: coaching, content, writing, management, etc.

They've never really amounted to large sums, but that doesn't matter.

What matters is that I know I have the capability to do it.

Because once you’re capable of something, the only factors for growth become time and consistency.

Why should you future-proof?

I realized there were others that weren't safe after reflecting on my de-hiring situation (some conspiracies involved).

I talked to a few of them for a bit more insight.

They didn't feel safe either, but they didn't know what they could do about the situation.

They had no idea what they would do next.

I asked a few more of my friends who work other jobs if they also felt this way.

The overwhelming answer was yes.

People are unhappy at their jobs and anxious that they could be on the chopping block at any time.

Yet, there's nothing for them to do but wait in limbo.

A job working as an employee for someone else will never be a safe job in my eyes.

They have no reason to be 100% honest with you.

I've seen it firsthand.

They’ll call themselves "families", but families should not have constant worries about their financial futures.

What could I even do?

There are many things that you could do to prepare for the day you're done at your job (willingly or unwillfully).

Most likely, you've already started without knowing it.

Let's dive in.

Always be learning

Knowledge is power.

Yes, it's cliche, but it's true.

The more quality information you consume, the more primed you are when a situation that calls for that knowledge arises.

Even if it's just trivial facts, you're building up a knowledge base.

Better than that, you're keeping your brain plastic - ready to change and take on new information.

Learning is a skill that most of us start to distance ourselves from after we're done with our schooling.

If you fall into that category, it's going to take a little time to knock the rust off.

But it's important that you do.

Curiosity (which goes hand-in-hand with learning) is an S-tier trait.

If you're never curious about anything, life loses its sparkle.

It's also a key indicator of whether you're going to be in the same place for the rest of your life.

Staying comfortable is a great way to rely on the same company (that most likely doesn't care about you) forever.

Stay curious; stay learning.

Hobbies

This might be the most important way to future-proof yourself.

Hobbies play such an important role in life.

They provide flow.

They expand your identity.

They're a buffer when something is going wrong in another part of your life.

They're social catalysts.

They facilitate growth and learning.

And you can monetize them (we can talk more about this later - I have some hot takes).

Hobbies are a non-negotiable to me.

If work is your whole life and identity, you're going to end up in a dark place when it's not going well.

And we all know at this point that work and productivity are not true markers of a human's worth.

A thought that might come up is, "Ugh, how can I fit even more in a day?"

You'd be surprised at how full of energy you feel when you find the right hobby.

Even when you get home from the worst work day possible, there are things that will pick you back up and make you feel brand new.

Start small

If you're anything like me, once you're intrigued by something, you want to know everything about it, so you go all in.

Don't be like me.

Having a full-time job is taxing.

Taxing on your body, taxing on your mind, and taxing on your energy.

Don't feel like you need to hit the ground running on starting a new hobby or launching your new business.

Do what you're able to, and do that consistently.

Consistency will yield much better results than huge efforts that are inconsistent.

Reading for 10 minutes every day is better than reading for 45 minutes once a week.

Things don't need to happen all at once.

Now that I don’t have a job again, writing is going to be higher on my priority list once again.

I missed writing immensely.

In a way I see this as a blessing in disguise.

I was obviously not meant to be at that job, but there were other reasons I was there for a short time.

Now I can get back to focusing on the things that I’m truly passionate about.

Looking forward to talking with you all more.

Until next time, with love,

Noah