"Maybe you should concentrate on your career." My dad said to me tonight.

I sat there looking at my father across the kitchen table, a few months shy of my thirtieth birthday wondering if he felt the last year of my life has been a hopeless romp of wasted time.

For those who don't know me, I used to work incessantly at an accounting firm to impress my bosses, my peers, and my clients. I strived for excellence and worked hard to earn respect for many years. Last year, having some significant changes in life circumstances, I made the decision to walk away from the crazy work schedule that had me brainwashed into working every minute, thinking every minute, and spending every minute readying myself for another task. I was exhausted all the time. I was short-tempered. I was worn thin. I was just a shell of a man. Everyone knew the impact the lifestyle had on me. Friends knew if they wanted to see me, it would have to be on a saturday night, and I would likely have to turn in early to get ready for the next day of work. My girlfriend grew accustomed to dealing with my foul mood and did her best to put up with it. My family knew the sacrifice I had made for work, respecting it immensely, and did all they could to take care of my weary body by fueling it with nutritious food and taking care of all my adminstrative worries. Yet, with all the support I received from my loved ones, everyone knew that work was all-consuming and it made me rotten and miserable to my very core.

My decision to walk away from the firm, from the perspective of every outsider, was a clear one. I was unhappy, and I had to do something to change that situation. Tomorrow marks the one year anniversary I started in my new line of work, which allows me to maintain a 9-5 lifestyle. In this past year, I have not concentrated very much on developing my career. My focus has been on my spiritual journey, healing my soul, seeking creative pursuits, trying to find worthy causes to lend my hand, finding a place to call me own and looking for that special someone. The life aspects over the past year could not have been at a higher high in spite of my career having been "stalled" by comparative standards with my peers and in the eyes of my father.

Tonight, as my father sat across the table with his matter-of-fact statement, I could not escape the irony of being sized-up against a work-centred life that had made me so miserable. I realized that my dinner conversations over the past year have been in sharp contrast to the years of griping about work and career development. My focus was on grand life dreams and better days ahead. But for some reason, my focus has my dad wondering why I would pursue something other than my career. I know my father means well, but his statement really rubbed me the wrong way tonight. Though, it was the first time in a long while, I bit my tongue and accepted his words.

I love my dad, but at some point tonight I realized I have to grow up and stop answering to other people's perspectives. It took me nearly thirty years to realize this.

Sometimes you may seem hopeless to others, but it's no different than the homeless on the street. You have to see the true potential in yourself, even if others at the time - don't quite see it in you.