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There are a couple of reasons why I’m here, why I recently reopened Vanport Media. The main reason is that I needed to get back to directly helping people, using the skills I’ve accumulated over most of my working life. Another reason is that I’d much rather work with a stylebook than an actuarial table. Let me explain:

I first opened the virtual doors here in early 2010, but I struggled getting going, so I took on a series of part-time jobs to eek by while I built the business. Or, that was the plan. What happened was I got a temp gig at an insurance company, first doing mindless clerical crap, but then I was offered an actual, regular job in document acquisition and customer service. In other words, I helped people get their stuff together when filing a claim.

And they paid well, so I got sidetracked. Right off the bat, I was making twice what my business plan called for me to make in the third year. Money money money. Cool. I spent a full year enjoying that money, but also “enjoying” quite a bit of stress, higher blood pressure and other delights of corporate life. From there, things went downhill. After years of being a journalist and pretty much setting a flexible schedule, I felt more and more hemmed in by the giant concrete coffin in which I worked in downtown Portland. I needed an escape plan.

I knew editing, layout and writing were what I did best, and Vanport Media had just been sitting in mothballs for over two years. It was there, waiting for me to breathe some life back into it. I hatched a plan that allowed myself a little bit of a monetary cushion. Once I hit that predefined mark, I bailed out of the coffin and breathed free for the first time in almost three years. Just a week away from the old grind, I knew I’d made the right decision — for my health, career, life.

What does it all mean? Beats me. At least, in a larger sense. But what I do know is that, for me, I feel so much better doing what I know I’m supposed to be doing. Lots of “know” and “do” in that last sentence. Roger that.

This entry was posted on November 18th, 2013 and is filed under General.