I just left my corporate job. I don’t have anything lined up. I’m an unemployed girlie and I’ll figure it out as I go. I had to be reachable by phone 24/7 and everyone abused the policy. It felt like I could never fully unwind during my time off from work because of the constant emails, phone calls and texts that I had to respond to, or else I’d be scolded and called out during meetings.
I won’t miss working overnight or early morning fieldwork shifts. I won’t miss the notifications waking me up at all hours of the day. Someone got ahold of my personal number, then contacted me for some non-urgent trash while I was on PTO. Being tethered to my job 24/7 really disrupted my life.
My value as a person isn’t tied to my labor.
After deactivating my work phone and turning it in, I finally feel the stillness that was lacking from my life for the past two years. It feels great.