Getting Unstuck

Letting go has nothing to do with “quitting.” Ask yourself, “Am I sticking it out or am I staying stuck?” You know yourself best.  ~~ Alex Elle

This is a quote a colleague of mine posted on Facebook recently, and it really stuck on me (no pun intended).  I truly thought I would work in some capacity as a medical transcriptionist until I decided to retire, whether it be actual transcribing or instructing. The one big advantage to the MT profession is that you can work at it as long as you desire to do so. I had a dear friend who transcribed into her 80s—that is how much she loved it. I loved it too, but I was finding myself getting a little burned out from it.  I had been in the industry for 37 years. That’s a long time for one type of job, especially when you consider many people have more than one career throughout their lifetime. 

I feel like I fit into both scenarios with regard to letting go of my MT career. Even though I genuinely loved being an MT instructor, I was sticking it out, because I was often thinking about when I could retire.  At the same time, I did feel stuck because it never occurred to me that there was anything else I could do besides medical transcription.  I have written a lot of articles and a newsletter over the years, but those were all related to my job. I even wrote a textbook, but that was also about MT.  Even though I did not finish and publish the MT textbook until after I lost my teaching job, it was still something I had worked on off and on over the years.  I had never written even a short story, much less a full novel.  I did have an inkling I was a good writer because I knew the articles I wrote were good based on the feedback I received, and I also had a handful of times throughout my career where I had to write difficult letters. They were business related, but they were still difficult situations where I had to communicate well in dealing with delicate circumstances. 

While I did not choose to step away from my MT career, somewhere there was a voice telling me I needed to give this writing thing a try.  Literally a few short weeks before I was told my job was being eliminated, I had spoken with my brother and sister about writing this story about our mom. I wanted to make sure they were okay with it before I proceeded.  Now had I not lost my job, A Life Unplanned would probably still be in the draft stages. Who knows when I would have gotten it done. So I was lucky in a way because I was pushed into this new career, although I did work at trying to find a new job while I was writing.  

I still struggle with completely letting go of my former career.  I was a certified MT, and I just finished up the last of my continuing education credits for my final 3-year cycle. I won’t be renewing my dues to my professional association of which I was a member for over 30 years.   A part of me feels almost guilty about that, as if I’m not supporting my industry. But then I realize I did support it for 37 years.  I think that shows quite a bit of loyalty.  I did love being an MT and feel very blessed I was able to work in the field as long as I did.  I know there are people out there who hate their jobs, and I know they must feel stuck, so it’s not a matter of letting go; I know they can’t let go.  But my hope for you is that, if you do have a particular passion or there is something you have always wanted to try, you will give it a go and not let it go!  It may be something you have to do on a very part-time basis, but you never know where that can lead if you don’t try.  You might not get pushed as I did. Then again, maybe the best person to do the pushing is yourself.  Enjoy your day and, as always, thanks for reading.