Being grateful because it’s gone

BEING GRATEFUL BECAUSE IT’S GONE

With the beginning of every new year, I often find myself thinking back on the prior year(s!) and make a list of all the things I’m eternally grateful for.

Nah. This year I’m laying out all the things that have been taken away from me.

Since launching Rescue Desk almost 10 years ago, it seems every day … every week … every month … every year … something is gone.  Stolen. Kaput. Outta there. Never to be seen again.

For that, I’ll be eternally grateful.

There was a time when I used to spend money like … well … like I was getting a weekly paycheck. But, there’s a wonderful freedom that comes with living a simple, conscious life and knowing what true success feels like with every penny Rescue Desk earns.

Punching in at 8 a.m. just to punch out at 5 p.m. was long gone by day #2 of year one. While it’s true I’m up and at ‘em a lot earlier, and I am often found powering on well into the evening, the simple fact that all the minutes of every day are all mine makes every hour over overtime worth it.

In my life as an employee, Friday was the favorite child of the work week while Sunday was the mean-spirited, schoolyard bully who tormented me before another Monday morning. But, thanks to taking back control of my world, the Sunday Night Bully has been beaten back into her cave.

I used to plant my wallflower-self along the fringe of the action. Thanks to discovering the inner feisty power that comes with business ownership, I’m not sad to see the wallflower wilting.

In corporate life, I used to enjoy professional development days, even though the price I usually paid for a little extra learning was sitting in a freezing conference room listening to someone drone on about something only marginally interesting. The cold conference room of yesteryear has been replaced by a personal library full of books and magazines I read at my leisure, a calendar full of workshops that fit into my schedule, and a half-dozen weekly podcasts that I can turn off and on at will.

“Bring Your Dog to Work Day” is something I’m particularly thankful to see go, since I now enjoy “Have Your Dog at Work Every Day.”

I practically threw a party when there was no more morning commute to cubicle confinement in the midst of rush hour. Instead I decide if I want to make 10 steps to my fully-loaded home office, or head to our funky downtown office space, where nary a cubicle wall can be found.

For everything that’s been taken away, something way better has always slid right into place. So, this year, saying thanks will go hand-in-hand with saying good riddance.