The Write Way to Survive a Life Pivot

Sometimes life just pivots. Ok, so this has really been more of a slow turn I’ve seen coming for a while, but it’s a big turn – so I’m calling it a pivot.

The Best Husband Ever has MS.  It’s been progressing fairly steadily for a while, and now it has taken a large portion of his coordination and seriously impacts his ability to walk – especially in the afternoon.  The fatigue from fighting to make his body do something as simple as walking overcomes him in the afternoon. I feel the need to be home more, to make sure he doesn’t fall and hurt himself (or others), and to be a parent to my children when they get home from school and he needs to nap so he can be up for dinner.

How do you do that when working 40 hours a week as a paralegal for a busy attorney at his sole practitioner firm? You can’t.  Well… I can’t.

With the support of The Best Boss Ever and my fabulous co-worker, I’m reducing my hours to 20 hours per week, dropping the family law portion of the practice, but keeping the civil litigation portion (personal injury, wrongful death, medical malpractice, etc.) We’ve hired a new girl who seems super smart, super nice, and has a sense of humor that should fit right into our little group. She’ll shadow me for the next 2 weeks and then she’ll take over family law full-time.

I’ll be at work 20 hours per week, and then home to work on my writing business (Yay! You can read more of me!) and to help my husband develop his CBD Oil business.  I’m still querying agents and editors about my manuscript, but am also looking for freelance writing jobs to help fill in the missing income.

Now, this change isn’t really ideal. Ideally I’d have a healthy husband, an ample savings account, a housekeeper, and a beautiful chalet somewhere super inspiring and oodles of time to just sit and write about love, sex, and romance – but that’s not what The Universe has chosen for me. Since I’m going to take this pivot and create something better than before, I thought that should be today’s post: The right way (“write” way… get it?) to survive a life pivot.

Of all the on-line posts and articles I’ve read about surviving a career change, the following points resonated the most:

1.  Have an open mind.  What is it that calls to you? What opportunities are presenting themselves to you? It’s difficult during a time of transition to get out of your own head, but look up and around. Pay attention to what’s coming to you and investigate it. It might just be the next best thing to happen to you.

2.  Remember when you succeed and forget when you fail. I’m not saying you shouldn’t learn from failure – you should, and then move on.  Don’t dwell on failure. Remember the times and the things that help you succeed and focus on those.
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3.  Be willing to learn. Whether you’re starting out on a brand new adventure, or finally doing what you’ve-been-doing-all-along-just-not-for-real, realize there’s always something to learn. New lingo, how to research more efficiently, or why the honey bees are disappearing – be willing to get out there and learn what you need to in order to succeed.

4.  Believe in yourself. You have something unique, something no one else can offer. Believe that you are succeeding and act as if you are already a winner. You are worth it and worthy of the goal you seek.

5.  Be ready/willing to change something. Even if your plan is carefully thought out, every possible outcome considered, every step mapped – be ready for the unexpected and don’t get stuck following your plan. Sometimes (a lot of times) things don’t work out like you’d planned or hoped. Be willing to allow your old plan to fall away and embrace “Plan B.”

Author and blogger Ian Sanders (Check out his blog here) wrote, “Sometimes it’s best to approach your career like a road trip: the random left turns and the interesting people you meet on the side of the road is where the magic happens.”

I intend to survive this change by continuing to cultivate my writing. I will write more, better, and in ways I haven’t previously done.  I will continue to produce excellent work product at my day job – helping others through emotionally trying times, and find other freelance jobs to fill in the gap until I find the agent/editor who “gets me” and picks up my book.  Despite this change – because of this change – I will be a better wife, mother, daughter, friend, and writer.

So this week, my reader, I’d like to know your tips.  What did you do when your life pivoted? What worked for you? What didn’t work? What advice do you have for someone else whose life is taking a turn? Find me on Facebook or leave me a comment below and share your knowledge!

My thoughts are my own, but my pictures are generally found on Pinterest (you can find anything there!). If you like what I write, please share with your friends or someone you think would like it! I’d love it if you follow me on Facebook (Melissa Gale), Instagram (write2unpack), or Twitter (@write2unpack). Oh, hey, and if you sign up here to follow me you’ll never miss a post!