Just...

I visited an old friends the other day, but he dropped the "J" word in our conversation.

Why don't you "just" do...It seems my lifestyle and career ambitions are difficult for many to stomach and they would prefer to see someone settle for a career path with more security and fewer challenges, opportunities and fun.

Why? I'm not saying my way of life is better than any other or that it is for everyone. But, personally, I have a hard time rationalizing "just" doing anything. Besides maybe sleeping, people spend more time working than doing anything else. If your job takes up that much time, why would you not want to do something which motivates, inspires and challenges you?

I understand family obligations, saving for retirement and making prudent financial decisions. But, I don't understand sacrificing years 30-60 to live the good life from 60-death. I am of the "4-hour workweek" crowd that aims to live the good life throughout, mixing mini-retirements (a nice way of saving time of unemployment for me) with steady employment (usually with professional basketball clubs in Europe).

I have a friend who was recently laid off and even though he has a couple months severance, he is paranoid about finding a job. He has two projects that he has tried to pursue hile working for the last two years, one a business and the other a movie script. I tried to get him to go for one or both during the time his severance covers, but he is so worried about finding a job that he won't even try.

My dad said to me a couple years ago that jobs won't find you, you have to apply. But, nearly every job I have had in the last five years has found me or I have created on my own. I use my time of unemployment to lay the groundwork for something new. I used to spend entire days looking for jobs and it was fruitless. Now, I don't really look, but instead try to create different revenue streams. I don't "just" want to take a job. I want to pursue things that interest and challenge me.

I have four businesses in various stages of development, a re-write of a book and am writing a documentary. I trust that these will bring in more income than spending my time looking for a job. I could be wrong and I could end up poor or working until I die while my friends enjoy the fruits of their retirement packages. Who knows? But, at least I do things my way rather than giving into the J (Just) word.