Free as a Bird (Or a Plane)
The past Friday was the last day of my day job at Great Insurance Jobs where I spent around 7,000 hours during the last 3½ years, and naturally I have mixed feelings. I worked with a lot of great people, learned a wide variety of new things and had a vast range of experiences, both good and bad. While the deeper significance of this event has yet to sink in, overall I am glad that I worked there. I feel grateful for the innumerable opportunities my job provided for me to grow, and so it is largely with a heavy heart that I leave now to go out on my own.
However, I am thrilled with my newfound freedom and I am extremely excited about the possibilities that the future holds. I am going to be working from home, developing a potentially high-risk business during which I’ll need to be looking for other ways to generate income to pay all my bills. Right now I have several web development contracts lined up, plus a few more potentials, but who knows when that’s going to run out. I’m receiving a few sales of fish oil everyday and my Fish Oil Blog is now on the first page of Google for “fish oil” (in addition hundreds of other fish oil related phrases), but I’ve yet to fully capitalize on the traffic. I’m also selling weed. (Just Kidding 
)
As you can see, nothing about my outcome is certain (is it ever?) and I have no highly stable sources of income. It feels like I’m aboard an incomplete airplane that has just taken off and I have no choice but to construct the plane while it’s already in the air. It brings me a renewed sense of aliveness and vigor to reach for my dreams. While I’m at it, I have to be careful not to let doubts make me to lose touch with my excitement, causing it to be unconsciously projected and transmuted into anxiety. I say that because right now I’m playing with the idea that anytime you feel anxiety, it is always the result of repressed excitement. I highly recommend reading this series about shadow projection by Ken Wilber.
As I have begun my transition, I have decided to give my workspace an extreme makeover to ensure for the greatest success. I am a strong believer that your environment plays a huge part in determining your levels of relaxation and productivity, both of which I want to maximize. This means painting the walls a new, more productive color. It means buying a new desk, some plants, a full-spectrum light-therapy lamp and a fountain. I’ve even sold myself on needing a Mac Book Pro to foster creativity! (Haven’t you used their sweet MacOS?)
But, you see, this presents me with a problem! As I mentioned before, I can just barely afford to keep the bills paid, so I currently lack the necessary resources to achieve this dream of ultimate productivity. As a result, I am reaching out to those around me to aid me in realizing this vision. I welcome you, the reader and ever-loyal friend of mine, to support me in anyway that you feel. I am not looking for charity per se, but rather investments into our relationship. In exchange for their investment, all investors have the option of receiving consulting in any area of my expertise, including search engine optimization, internet marketing, website usability, positive psychology, goal achievement, nutrition, stress management, emotional intelligence, interpersonal efficacy and romantic relationships! What a deal!
Scott and Roger, my employers at Great Insurance Jobs, generously gave me a $250 gift certificate to Amazon.com because they wanted to help get me going and Amazon offers everything from reference materials to home furnishings to office supplies. Thanks, guys! If anyone else would like to join the ranks of those that support me and my efforts and my writing, you are welcome to send an Amazon Gift Certificate to me*at*marshallsontag.com (replace *at* with @). Or you can buy me a Mac Book Pro, I’ll take the one in the middle with a 7200 RPM hard drive. 
Thank you everyone for your support — I look forward to offering my friends and readers the best within me.
June 25th, 2006 at 8:43 pm
I’m moving into a new place soon, and I’m a cheap bastard, so I’ll just remind you that you can make your PC look like a Mac…which kind of brings you closer to what you want.
RK Launcher
June 26th, 2006 at 4:10 pm
Go Marsh! What an inspiring post. It sounds like you’ve got a good balance going about these things, and I can relate to the free feeling of breaking out on one’s own — and to the challenge of it on a financial level.
In that department, I’d say ethical but illicit activities can indeed be helpful. Hehe.
June 26th, 2006 at 4:22 pm
Good job taking the leap. I think its great that you are setting up your work environment, although it reminds me of when I tried to start a band with my friends once. We spent the first 3 days trying to think of a band name. On the fourth day we got sick of each other, and never played a note. HAHA!
Personally, id start with a cable spool table and a brick seat.
Good luck with everything!
June 28th, 2006 at 1:00 am
sarah mclachlan sucks…i didn’t realize you were an expert in so many fields! how did you attain this status?
i share a place with you on the path to finding the balance of relaxation AND productivity
hmm, buying new plants AND lights simultaneously…….your government will send you to guantanamo if they see this, but as long as its for freedom right
June 28th, 2006 at 2:14 pm
Jason: Thanks! I also found this thing called Launchy, which emulates Quicksilver on the mac. Give it a try!
Andrew: Thanks! “Ethical, but Illicit” is my middle name!
Beesucker: Thanks! I appreciate your suggestions, but cable spool tables and brick seats don’t really go with my interior decorating motif of “I’m Not F’ing Homeless!”
Will: Well, I guess life isn’t complete without someone coming along to piss all over everything, but I suppose what really matters is how you handle it. As such, I would like to recommend to you that you take me up on my offer to teach you a little about positive psychology. Lesson #1: Capitalize your own name.
June 28th, 2006 at 3:26 pm
Congrats Em! I am so happy for you and at the same time find myself stiffling this cavernous feeling of hatred for you for leaving me here with the mad hatter. Ah, but I am convinced this is some sort of shadowy refractionary thing that you referred to in your post. Due to my current monetary constraints, I regretfully will not be contributing to your desk or mac device, but I can hook you up with some badass plants to liven up your new office space. Love you!! :-*
June 28th, 2006 at 3:30 pm
Thanks Jessabug! I actually had you and Henry in mind when I wrote about the plants… Although, Henry can only get those boring pot-hoes — but he can get me painting supplies! Tell him to bring paint supplies when he comes to help me put my desk together. :-*