This is the first of a series in which I will be revisiting the past 10 years and exploring that all-important question: What do I want to do with the rest of my life?
It was the summer of 1996. I had recently left my job covering IPOs for Bloomberg Financial Markets so I could start up my own fitness information web site, FitnessLink. People thought I was crazy, but my husband supported me and I was passionate about what I was doing. How I wish I had some of that passion now.
In 1998 my son was born and a year later FitnessLink was so successful that my husband left his job to partner with me. Maybe I look back with rose-colored glasses, but I remember life being pretty good. Balanced. I had a career that motivated and fulfilled me. My husband and I had terrific synergy. We had a sitter 15-20 hours a week, but we were able to spend lots of time with our son and we still went out alone together a couple times a month. My story was featured in several magazines (read more here, scroll to page 5), I was interviewed on television, and I was a speaker at several fitness conferences.
In the summer of 2000, we were approached by a company that wanted to acquire FitnessLink. We investigated and ultimately accepted their offer of cash and a two-year employment contract with benefits for each of us. Within a year, that company was going out of business. As they say, the “dot com bubble had burst.”
My husband and I were happy we had sold when we did. However, I was left with no job (my husband had kept his public relations business alive all along, so he bounced back quickly). Worse, I was left with no passion.
Over the following year I tried on a few different “careers,” none of which felt right for me. So I made a decision: Being a homeschooling mom would be my career.
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey being a homeschooling mom is the HARDEST career ever!
It takes alot of energy and goodwill!
Keep on going! you rock!
Instead of “To be continued…”, you should end every episode in this series with “THE END”. (Hey, did you hear? Thomson is buying Reuters!)
ok, cliff hanger….I love your story. I had my own business for 18 years and now I stay at home,plan to HS ( I have 2 toddlers) and do work at home(when I have a minute). My passion…hmmmm,blogging..yikes it’s come to this!
What a wonderful story! Wow!
Twitter: LisaMDayC
March 22, 2010 at 7:42 am
I understand about losing passion ….
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Wow…that had to be hard.
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March 22, 2010 at 9:16 am
Writing a blog as long as you have and not only being a mom but homeschooling too, that seems like a lot and a good passion to have right now. ;)
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Twitter: pediatricsafety
March 22, 2010 at 10:25 am
I understand exactly how you feel when something you loved / planned on doing falls through, and it saps your passion and motivation. I am incredibly impressed how you picked yourself up and found something new to devote yourself too.
Congrats home-schooling mom! You are amazing!
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March 22, 2010 at 1:41 pm
Yay for being a homeschool mom!
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Interesting story… glad you have reclaimed your passion!
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