The more I have slowed down, the more I am able to enjoy and appreciate the simple things in life. Here is why I chose a slow living lifestyle.
I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. Learn more here.
While I was attending college a few years ago, I was determined to graduate with a good degree, continue my education, and rise up the corporate ladder. College was a place that I thought people had to go in order to become successful, especially as a first generation student.
My parents had never finished college, let alone attended college. Therefore, they also believed that I needed to attend college in order to be successful. At least more successful than they were!
It felt like everyone around me were all focused on the same things. Making more money, having a nice/fancy job title, and buying nicer material things. I too sort of got sucked into this for a while. I wanted that nice title and I was planning on earning a doctorate degree and making a large amount of money. To be honest, the main reason I wanted a doctorate degree was so people would call me “doctor”. How silly is that?!
The year I graduated college was also the year I got married (to my high school sweet heart!). I found a job in my field (sociology) and quickly found out that I did not enjoy it at all.
Why I slowed down
Perhaps it was that I was trying to juggle marriage and a new job all at once. Maybe the field just wasn’t for me. I decided to find a different job, an office job as a admin assistant, and also hated it. After bouncing around jobs for a while, I realized that what I hated was working for someone else. I hated working by the hour. Knowing exactly how much I would make by the end of the day did not motivate AT ALL.
I was tired of commuting, tired of sitting in front of a computer all day, and tired of having to wear office attire! Most importantly, I was longing to be home, cooking, cleaning, and making our home feel cozy for my husband and I. Our home was always messy because we were both working all day and our commutes were pretty long! I realized that there was nothing I wanted more than to SLOW DOWN.
I didn’t want to go back to school. Going back would mean more debt, less time, and an obligation to work in the field! I decided I was going to try to start my own business and make money from home. & that’s exactly what I did!
Living a slower paced life
Like I said before, I was craving a slower paced, slow living lifestyle! I wanted to be a homemaker and a mom. However, I still liked the idea of working from home and making some type of money to help my husband. So I talked to him about it and we agreed that if I was able to match what I was making at work, I could quit my job.
I’m going to be honest, my life sort of sped up for a few months before slowing down. I was building my business all while working full time and being a wife! It was all worth it because in just 4 months, I was able to leave my job. I now work from home, making just enough money to live plus some to save. My husband loves that I’m home (as do I) and we get to spend a lot more time together.
I also started being smarter with money along with shopping sustainably and practicing slow fashion. I shop at thrift stores and sites like Poshmark all the time! We also eat out less, which has been great for our wallet and health.
Related: 10 Things I no Longer Buy as a Minimalist, Things to Stop Buying to Live Minimally
Slowing down even more
While I have slowed down a lot, both my husband and I plan to slow down even more and create a slow living lifestyle. Currently, we live in the Bay Area, CA. This means everyone here is trying to rise up the corporate ladder and life is very fast paced here. Not to mention, it’s also very expensive! My husband is also in the process of starting his own business and California is not very business friendly.
We plan to move out of the state soon, start a family, and live a slow, traditional life! Saying that I’m excited is an understatement. This slow living lifestyle has been so good for my soul that I no longer crave fancy material things. I love staying home, making homemade meals, and keeping my home organized and tidy.
Dealing with Guilt & Judgement
When I told people that I quit my corporate job and no longer planned on attending grad school, they all looked at me with confusion.
“What are you going to do?”
“Don’t you want to make more money?”
“My company is hiring if you change your mind.”
“So you’re just going to be a wife?”
These are all things people told me. Not only this, but it seemed that everyone looked down on women who just wanted to stay at home to be wives and mothers. They also didn’t understand why I wanted to slow down and live traditionally.
For a long time, I felt guilt of staying home. Even though I was making money and working from home, I felt as if I wasn’t good enough. I no longer had nice job title. I didn’t wear fancy office clothing. The biggest challenge for me was that I could no longer relate to my friends and family members. Many people close to me didn’t understand my job from home and thought I did nothing all day. They would call and ask me for favors, thinking I was always free. I had to set up some boundaries to make it clear that just because I was home didn’t mean I was always free.
Not Caring What People Think
Those are just things I had to work through mentally when I first began my slow living life. Now, I don’t really care what other people say. It’s my life and I choose to live this way because it’s what I love. I don’t care that I don’t have a fancy job title or a bunch of credentials to my name.
Being a homemaker and running my small business from the comfort of my own home is such a blessing! I have more time, less stress, and more happiness. If you’re craving a slower paced life, I highly encourage you to just go for it. It’s so rewarding and great for your mental health, whatever your reason for wanting to slow down might be.
Sincerely,
Denise
