I noticed that the last time I posted was back in August of 2023. That post was about my first day back at work after spending a week visiting the grand kids. Here it is March 2025 and I am just now thinking about blogging again.
The thing was, I have not had any work life balance for the past 19 months. My work load was getting heavier and heavier since I was promoted to assistant manager in 2021. My husband was unhappy with the hours I was putting in. He even pointing out that my boss didn't put in those kind of hours. My children were worried about my health. I was also dealing with a lot of personnel issues in the department. Add to it my boss seemed to be distancing himself from me and I didn't know why.
During all of this mess, I stopped doing the things that made me happy and gave me peace. I was so overly focused on work that I lost myself for a while. I am now just starting to care about my own happiness again. This is a post about what triggered the change.
After working at my company for 16+ years, I resigned my position. Why? Because I realized that my efforts were not valued. Nor were my abilities appreciated. My boss of 16 years was fired at the beginning of January. At that time I was told I was in charge of the department. (A position I was told I would have if anything caused my boss to no longer be with the company.) I was expecting the be told they were promoting me to manager (my boss' position).
When I hadn't heard anything after a week, I looked at the company job postings. The position was not posted. The following Monday, the corporate person over our department informed me that she had interviewed someone for the manager job. I was pissed and hurt. I looked at the postings again and the position was posted. I applied for the position and went through the interview process, only to find out they were not giving me the job.
They were giving it to a supervisor from another plant, who had only been with the company for a couple of years. He didn't have any more qualifications than I did. He also didn't know the processes we used at this plant. The reasons they gave for not choosing me were the very things I said were my short comings. They couldn't be bothered to look for their own reasons not to give me the job. It was very evident that they didn't even seriously consider me for the position.
On top of that, they tried to appease me by saying they would develop me and in the future, they felt I could be an excellent quality operations manager. (basically what I was already doing) I was angry and hurt. I felt betrayed. The person they gave the job to was the very person they first interviewed. I found out later that he had been told about the posting and was encouraged to apply. It was a slap in the face.
So on 2/21, I emailed my resignation as I was driving off company property. I ended up calling in sick the next day. When I was still ill on Monday, I went to the doctor. I had a sinus infection, swollen glands, and my blood pressure was 190/110. The doctor put me out until Friday the 28th. My blood pressure stabilized over the next couple of days. My glands went down and the sinus infection responded to the antibiotics.
I was scheduled for vacation on 2/28 to 3/7. So I didn't work the last 2 weeks. My husband, daughter and I spent a week in Hawaii. When I came back I realized how happy I really was. I also realized how unhappy I had been for a couple of years.
The thing about the whole situation that really surprised me, was how easy it was to walk away from the 16 year investment. When I applied for the manager job, I knew there was a chance I wouldn't get it.
While in the temple on 2/8, I was getting snippets of inspiration of what I could be doing with my life if I wasn't working all of the long hours.
When I decided to resign, I felt calm. People who know me would not describe me as calm person. I can be very dramatic and somewhat emotional. I over think things. But as I left the plant that last day, I was calm. I was going to miss people but I knew it was the right decision for me.
When I returned to the temple on 2/22, I received confirmation that I had made the right choice.
I knew my health was suffering. I knew my home life was suffering. My spiritual life was suffering. I was not happy. Now I am enjoying being a Grandma. I am seeking out spiritual renewal. I am getting enough sleep. I am feeling better than ever.
Most importantly, I am finding my peace and joy. I am returning to working on who I want to be. I am finding myself again.
After years of my life being all about work, it is now about life. So the scales of the work life balance are tipped to the other extreme for a little while at least.
If you want to be happy and healthy, Find your work life balance. Fight for it. Because I know without one, there is no life and no happiness.
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