Recently I was made redundant, and while I had seen it coming it was still a bit of a shock.
Determined not to let it affect me I threw myself into job hunting and before I’d even left my current employment I had an offer of a new job.
Without taking a break I finished my old job on a Friday and started at the new job on Monday.
I’d been with my previous employer a long time so starting a new job and being the ‘new boy’ was daunting to say the least.
Everyone has been really friendly and considering everything that has happened I thought I’d done a good job in the last few weeks of moving on and settling in.
That was until this week, when things, for whatever reason haven’t been going well. I ended up bringing some work home to get something finished that needed to be completed that evening. When I got home I was stressed, really stressed. My daughter came running up to see me and usually as soon as I see her everything seems to calm down and I feel relaxed – the whole ‘yah daddy is home’ is enough for me to forget about the stresses of the day. But not this time.
I was so wound up I immediately went and got my laptop so I could finish the piece of work. My daughter wanted to play and I tried to tell her daddy was busy and shooed her away.
As soon as I did I felt terrible. She went off and happily played with whatever she was playing with but just looking at her broke my heart.
I went into work the next day and told them I was taking a week off. The drive to and from work everyday is giving me a lot of time to think about my work/life balance.
I know I need to work, I have to provide for my family, but at what cost? Do I really need a job where I am coming home so stressed I can’t find time to play with my daughter?
I don’t get much time with her in the week, what time I do get it precious, the last thing I need is to be coming home stressed and taking it out on my family. I won’t let that happen.
I have a decision to make over the coming weeks as to whether this new job is really worth the impact it’s already having on me and my family, yes I need a job, yes I need to pay the bills but at what price? Surely there is more to life than going to work to come home upset and stressed nearly every day?
I owe it to my family to get the balance of work and life right, they are more important to me than any job.