A while back I made myself one promise: stop living for work and start living for me. Turns out that’s one of the few promises I’ve actually managed to keep. Work will chew you up, spit you out, and replace you before the coffee in the break room gets cold. That’s not being cynical. That’s just how the machine works. So I finally quit acting like my entire existence was tied to a paycheck.

These days I make time for the stuff that actually matters. I go geocaching. I mess around with old tech. I hang out with my wife. I spend time with the dogs. If I want to sit around a campfire doing absolutely nothing, then that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Turns out “doing nothing” is actually doing something when your brain has been running at full speed for years.

The funny part is how some people act like putting yourself first is selfish. Sorry, but I’ve already spent enough years making everyone else’s priorities my problem. My free time isn’t a community resource. It’s mine. If that disappoints somebody, they’ll survive. People are remarkably resilient when they’re forced to solve their own problems.

You only get one ride on this giant floating rock. I’m not wasting the rest of mine volunteering for overtime, stressing over things I can’t control, or pretending work is my identity. I still do my job, and I do it well. But when the workday ends, so does my obligation. The rest of the day belongs to me, and I’m keeping that promise.