“Remember, the easy road often becomes hard, and the hard road becomes easy.” Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad
I’m re-reading Rich Dad Poor Dad
But, this quote really hit me as I read it again this morning. I understand. Now, I know what he’s talking about. Twelve years ago when I first read this, I didn’t understand.
What changed? The words on the page didn’t change. So, I must have changed.
And, what changed about me? Was it my hair color? Yes, that’s gone a bit grey. But, what changed to cause me to react differently to this quote? Was it my thinking? I suspect that’s the correct answer.
My thinking has changed.
Let me share with you what the quote above means to me now. Why it struck me so hard this morning …
What is the Easy Road?
It means going to college, getting a job, and working for some else for an entire career. It means going to a trade school, getting a job and working for someone else for an entire career. It means going out and getting a job, working hard for someone else for an entire career.
To me, that’s the easy road. That’s the road I was on.
And, yes, it was easy at first. I couldn’t believe they were paying me all that money to do work that was at times interesting and generally easy. Life was good. I was on the easy road.
Easy Becomes Hard
But, I found, after many years of the easy road, it started to become hard.
It wasn’t that the work was any more difficult; if anything it was easier.
What became hard was … getting up every day and going into work. Doing work I didn’t enjoy. Work I didn’t find meaningful. Work that seemed to be a waste of my time. A waste of my talents. A waste of my energy.
A waste of my life.
I had to end this waste. So, I did.
Quit my JOB
On Monday, 13 July 2009, I went into work and submitted my resignation. I quit my job. I was 49 years old.
And along with quitting my job, I quit wasting time. I quit wasting my energy. I quit wasting my talent. I quit wasting my life.
Normally I associate quitting with failure. You’ve heard the sayings, “winners never quit and quitters never win.” And, generally, I agree. Never quit! Never give up!
But, does that also apply to things that are bad for you? Things like cigarette smoking? Like excessive alcohol drinking? Like excessive gambling? Excessive eating?
In these cases I would view quitting as a success; leaving the bad habits behind.
Well, that how I view quitting my job … a huge success. Just leaving a very bad habit behind!
Hard Becomes Easy
Quitting my job was not easy. I was now on the hard road. What do I do now? How do I shake off the job mentality cobwebs? How do I replace my income? How do I adjust to living without a steady paycheck coming in every two weeks like clockwork?
But, now – almost 2 years on – it’s easy. It’s fun. It’s exciting. It’s rewarding.
I’m excited about life. I’m excited about my work. I’m excited about each day. I look forward to getting up every day and working on the next adventure.
I’m off the easy road. And, it’s great. I would highly recommend it to everyone.
I might even say … since I got off the easy road, my life has gotten a lot easier.
“Doesn’t make sense!” You say.
You’re right. It doesn’t. But not everything in life makes sense. Some things just are.
Take gravity for instance. Does it make sense that it’s an attractive force? Why? Why not a repulsive force? It’s just the way it is. Does it make sense? Does it matter? It’s just the way it is.
Does it make sense that the easy road is harder than the hard road? No. But, it seems that’s just the way it is.
Which road are you on? Is that the road you want to be on?
I would challenge you this week to think hard about this quote. What does it mean to you? How does it have meaning for your life?