Balancing the Scale

I just needed to change my template. This looks like a table cloth. It's green, it's dainty and it has flowers. This is not me and I don't know why I like it. Edited, 8.17.09, 10:08AM. Obviously I was not able to stand the green, flowery, table-cloth like template. Too dainty for me. I opted to go back to my old template. End of edit.

In an unrelated matter, I finally used TweetDeck for my Twitter updates. I love it! It's more organized than Twitter and I can easily read updates. I use Twitter for two things - number one would be for my microblogging and number two would be updates from different news tweets and what's the latest on Hollywood. I am informed right away what is happening around the globe which is also vital with my kind of work.

This tweet update got me interested, from CNNMoney.com's Ask the Expert, "Retired at 38, Reality vs. Fantasy". The email sender has $900,000 and tired of the highly pressuring corporate life.

In a nutshell, the expert advised not to retire at the drop of the thought but take on simpler jobs, reduced hours and see how he will find living a simpler, slower paced life. It could be the younger one retires, the more money one needs.

Take that in Philippine setting. How much is $900,000? At the current conversion rate, that would be P43M. Yes, he can very well retire, build a ten-door townhouse or apartment for rent and invest some in stocks. But this comes to mind, if I have that money, will I retire this early?

Definitely I will invest my money on more real estate properties and stocks (with extra caution on this one). Financially, I will ensure the future of my daughter and my family. I will indulge on my interests like traveling with my family and pamper myself and my family on a number of occasions. I will set aside bigger amounts for my church and other charitable institutions for senior citizens and street children.

Being an entrepreneur as what I have been trying to master now is a totally different discussion so let me leave that part. So back to the question, can I really leave my work? Work for me is a source of good income and benefits. But additionally, it is one of the ways I enrich my social life and a great venue for continuous learning. I love interacting with the different people I meet in and out of my job. Sure I can also do that even without a job but it could be more limited.

Sometimes too, it's not all about money. A change in lifestyle when one retires has a big emotional impact one might not be prepared to take on. I want to slow down once in a while but my body system looks for a fast-paced life. Multi-tasking is my brand of heroin if I may borrow a line from Edward Cullen.

I always tell this to myself, I should be enjoying what I am doing so that I will not drag myself to work everyday. It's a personal decision of wanting to hold a career and continue balancing the scale. Taking a sabbatical is a good thing if work pressure is taking its toll. We all need to breathe some fresh air after all.