10 Ways to Escape the 9 to 5 and Follow Your Dreams
/Are you fed up with your nine-to-five office job? Do you get bored of seeing the same people day-in, day-out? Maybe your rush hour commute is slowly crushing your spirit and you long to break out of the rat race.
If you are suffering in silence in a career that brings you no fulfillment, there are ways to make a change. You only get one life, so why spend it feeling unsatisfied and miserable. You spend roughly a third of your adult life at work so your profession should be something that brings joy and meaning to your existence. Not just a means to put food on the table.
There are so many people in this world who have successfully followed their dreams and made a living doing what they love. People who work for animal rescue charities, stage actors, and small business owners, to name a few examples, have all chosen a life path that means a lot to them and pursued it until they made their dream a reality. And you can do the same.
If you want to travel the world and make money from the things you love, all you need is a plan and the motivation to take the first step. But if you’re not sure where to begin, the following guide will give you all the advice and inspiration you need. Here are ten tips to help you escape the nine-to-five lifestyle and chase your dreams.
Identify your dream
Before you hand in your resignation and abandon your job, you’ll need to have a plan to work towards. Otherwise you risk ending up unemployed and in financial hardship. Ask yourself what you want from your life. Perhaps you want to get paid to travel the world, write a novel, or start up your own business. All of these things are possible, but you need to know what you want in order to set yourself on the right path.
Make a plan
Now you have a vision in mind, you need to identify all the necessary steps to get you there. Make a list of actions that will bring you closer to your dream and give yourself a timeframe in which to complete them. This way, you give yourself accountability and the motivation to get things done.
Save money
Whatever way you choose to escape the nine-to-five, you want to guarantee you are financially secure before you take the leap. Otherwise you might end up sliding back to your old career as a necessity to make ends meet. If you haven’t yet started saving up, the best time to begin is right now. Stick to a budget and work out how much you’ll need to have tucked away in order to begin your new life path.
Work remotely
One of the easiest ways to break out of the traditional office lifestyle is to become a remote worker. Since the Covid-19 pandemic began, it has become increasingly common for companies to let their employees work from home at least some of the time. This hybrid structure of employment allows staff greater levels of freedom and balance in their day to day lives.
If you can find a job that allows you to work remotely, your life will be changed forever. Although you will still have to get your job done, you can theoretically log on from anywhere you like, whether it’s your bedroom, your favorite coffee shop, or a beach in Thailand. You can work according to your own schedule, take breaks whenever you want, and never have to face a sweaty rush hour commute ever again.
Go freelance
Why work for a single employer your whole life when you can go freelance and become your own boss? Being self-employed allows you to work as a contractor for multiple different companies and inject some variety into your career. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a designer, a copywriter, an accountant, or a climbing instructor. By selling your services to different organizations, you can set your own fees, operate whenever you like, and only work for the employers you want to work for. You can take as much or as little time off as you want, and you’ll have the added satisfaction of making it on your own.
Start your own business
If there is an area you are particularly passionate about, pluck up some entrepreneurial spirit and start your own business. There is no end to the possibilities from which you could choose. You could set up a vegan fast food outlet, a retail store selling designer dog clothes, or an international accountancy firm. You carve out your niche in any area you like. Of course you will need to work extremely hard to make this a reality, especially in the early stages of your company. There will be long nights building websites, emailing stakeholders and chasing leads. But if you stick with it and make it work, you will be able to grow your business and achieve your goals.
Become an artist
If you are a creative individual, then making art is one way to live an unconventional life. Whether it is writing novels, painting portraits, or composing music, the creative process has no rules or regulations. You can work anywhere you like and have the potential to create a lasting piece of art that will be remembered for years to come.
Find a travel-based career
Maybe your primary goal in life is simply to travel the world. Maybe you backpacked around Europe in your gap year and long to go back to those carefree nomadic days of the past. But jetsetting to the other side of the planet is expensive and time-consuming. You need to earn money in order to fund your travels. But what if you could find a job that paid you to visit exotic destinations? Being employed by a travel provider may give you this opportunity, as will working for a company with offices around the world. You could become an expedition leader, mountain guide, scientific researcher, journalist, or naval officer, to name just a few examples. Do your research into the various jobs that involve travel and see what takes your fancy.
Earn passive income
What if you could earn money without really working for it? It may sound like an impossible dream, but the truth is, for many people this is actually a reality. Earning a passive income means you have money regularly coming into your bank account while expending minimal effort, and there are so many ways to achieve this. You could purchase a property and rent it out to tenants. Or if you don’t have the capital to finance this, you could go smaller and rent out a room in your home. You could learn about cryptocurrency and invest your money in bitcoin or ethereum. For more information, take a look at this article which has ethereum explained in simple terms.
Become financially independent
Financial independence refers to the status of having enough wealth or income to live comfortably for the rest of your life without working. Although relatively few people achieve this goal, if you can manage it, it will afford you the freedom to do almost anything you want in life. To get there, you will need to clear your debts, save a great deal of money, and find ways to generate a passive income on the side. Follow these steps to learn how to become financially independent.
