For a while now I am following the Illuminated Mind blog and even purchased Reclaim your dreams (and also started reading it, though I still have something to do about the “finish reading it” part). The blog deals with how to get out of the trap of a job and life you don’t want, and raises challenging questions.

Today in the tramway back home I listened to Plan B, a recent episode of This American Life (which is great for a european listener like me since it communicates some of the culture of american life - or at least that’s the impression I got). This episode illustrates how many people live Plan B (or C, D, E…) of their life, because Plan A didn’t work out or didn’t turn out to be that good.

I wouldn’t say that everyone has a plan - I know many people who don’t and who are very happy without it - but I still think that many people have sort of a plan, or at least, an idea of what they would like to do - maybe even a dream. I find myself in the same situation as I’m writing this post, not really sure whether going for another job would bring more happiness or satisfaction in my life. Yet, two friends of mine chose to quit their job recently, even though the economical situation out there is not at its best. I know people who get into the real estate business. Some of them rent their residential property by following AAOA resources to guide them in making the extra income.

It requires a firm will to quit a job, especially when the situation is not that bad after all. In such case, following through with a dream is even harder because of the comfort - getting money, having a routine, having some sort of security - these things tend to become even more excuses not to leave. Or perhaps they build up as fear of loosing all those nice things.

However, the financial crisis should not be a show-stopper to switching jobs in my opinion, at least not in the field of IT (I can’t really talk of something else because I didn’t look into another field). Why? Simply, because:

  • there are plenty of job offers on the market, new ones appearing every day
  • the number of graduates in scientific subjects in Europe is steadily decreasing in the last years, whilst the demand is not

I agree that this might not be true when having a very narrow job focus, or when having a management position - but for young folks, I don’t see the crisis as something we should fear too much. So why is everyone so afraid of it? Perhaps because the mainstream media keeps on sending out only the negative information, not the positive one. Or perhaps because the shockwave did not impact yet. In any case, I feel confident that the crisis will bring a new set of ideas, perhaps also because some people will loose their job and have to leave their comfort zone.