There’s Never Enough Time, My Unemployed Days

My “break” that I’m in’ the last a few months turned into this perpetual state of happiness. There are few other noteworthy lessons I’ve learnt these past few months. Saving money is easier when you don’t have a choice.

When I earned, I spent it, knowing that every month end I’d get a salary. In fact, I felt justified spending it because I worked hard for that money, why shouldn’t I be able to enjoy it! All these years, I can’t even imagine what I used to spend my money on. When I buy things now, I know my husband can pay for it at any time. It’s all about priorities. So I prioritise saving whatever money I have.

Shopping compulsions can go away

Since my outings are now limited mainly to the supermarket and the occasional visit to the mall or meal with friends and husband, my daily outfit consists of a tee and jeans. I no longer stare aimlessly at my full closet every morning saddened by the fact that I have nothing to wear to work that day. I don’t get tired of wearing the same thing.

I believe my shopping compulsion previously had a lot more to do with my routineness at work and needing to something that made me feel good about having to go to work—buying clothes for it. Once in a while, I’ll buy a few things, always at a good value. And if I come home feeling like I spent too much money, I will always go back and return it.

Eating and sleeping are important

This sounds like a no-brainer, but this is the biggest lesson I’ve learnt in my corporate stint so far. When I was working full time, I ate poorly and slept little. I ate poorly because I didn’t have a lot of options., I never had time to cook with peace of mind.

I slept little because the last thing I wanted to do when I got home was sleep. I wanted to watch TV, read, talk with my husband, my parents, my friends – all the things that work deprived me of. I was determined not to let my weeks go by in a haze of wake up, get ready, go to work, get ready for bed, and do the whole thing over again. Now I eat well and listen to my body when it tells me to go to bed and wake up. I can’t blame my routine for my bad mood now. I can only blame the way I’ve treated my body.

There’s never enough time.

I now have enough time to do everything I ever wanted. I’ve started going for walks, started using our facility gym and started to write and read too, something that I’ve always craved for. I’ve also developed a habit of cooking every day, something I was never used to.

There has to be a line between work and home.

By far, this was the hardest lesson for me to learn. I’m not a workaholic. But I found it difficult to stop working. I didn’t want to be away from the computer. The wake-up call came on my own. My husband never complained, but I had started to get bored of my work. I consider myself lucky that I’m financially stable to don’t have to have a job for the month-end salary. But now I realise that since I’m unsocial by nature, so being forced in a work environment where I had to interact with people daily was good for me.

Things always work out. We adapt and we find ways to get by. It’s just whether or not you want to. When I find something I really want to pursue, the sacrifices in my unemployed days become very easy to make.Sreyashi Kochhar

**All the photos are from Google Images