Escape from Cubicle Nation

The joy of reading about another leap

Thanks to Lisa Solomon, I found this gem of a post from Danny Evans, author of Dad Gone Mad who expressed his joy at realizing his dream of writing books.

Excerpt:

One night, about a year ago, I decided to quit dreaming.

Every day, every night, for 20 years, the dream was exactly the same – same props, same characters, same outcome. I could picture all of it with vivid clarity, but the fantasy never survived the transition from sleep to the real here and now. It burned up on re-entry. It lived only in the ether of my mind.

In the dream, I was an author. I wrote books. I spent my days on safari in my own imagination. I was satisfied. I was doing what I loved for a living, and that contentment permeated every hard, dark corner of my existence. Then suddenly I was awake again, and the reality that I was NOT the person in my dream washed over me like rain cloud.

So one night, about a year ago, I decided to quit dreaming. I sat down at my keyboard and began to write. I began to create the trappings of my dream in real life.

It has been the hardest year of my writing life. Rejection has reigned. Every small victory has been countered by enormous disappointment and despair. I have neglected friendships, responsibilities, family obligations. Phone calls and emails have gone unreturned. I have opened my soul to criticism, and I have convinced myself that this is my last best chance to accomplish something for myself – to escape the rut of cubicle jobs, financial desperation and career aimlessness.

Thursday morning, my agent called from New York.

“You have a book deal,” she said.

Just like that, the dream became real.

Read the rest here.

All I can say Danny is ROCK ON!  That is the best. 

Workplace warning:  f-bomb word in post (this and others), and in the comments.  Used in a fun way, but if your corporate filters will get mad at you for this, better to read at your home computer.  If you don't dig profanity, better take a pass.

Congratulations to another corporate employee flying the coop

I have to say that I LIVE for emails and blog posts like the following I got this evening from Paul Lefebvre:

Hi Pam,

Another happy reader here who has made the jump into their own business. Thank you for your blog; it was a great help.

This is my blog post about my change:

http://www.logicalvue.com/blog/2008/02/leaving-the-day-job/

Thanks,

Paul Lefebvre
LogicalVue Software, Inc.
http://www.LogicalVue.com

I am so thrilled that my writing helped Paul have the confidence to make the leap.  But if you read his post in detail, you will see the MANY great things he did which make his a perfect case study for all of us:

• He tuned into his interests and tested a business idea
• When it didn't pan out due to market conditions, he scrapped it but held onto the idea of working for himself
• He spent lots of time immersing himself in a new area of interest, and not only learned about it, but contributed to the field by writing and speaking
• He built an outside network while still working as an employee
• He started consulting gigs on the side of his day job to test the market
• He maintained a totally professional relationship with his employer, even opening the possibility of doing consulting for them after he leaves
• He acknowledged the support of his spouse and kids, who obviously give him strength and support
• He is building a business model which includes both products and services, which will give more flexibility and diverse income streams

I could go on and on.

Basically Paul, I am just exceedingly PROUD of you!

Thank you so much for inspiring us all.  Congrats on the birth of your business, and please let us all know what you learn in your first year as a full-time start-up!