Hello. It's been over 2 years since I quit my job.

Surprisingly, I'm having a lot of fun and I wanna talk about it.

In my 20s, my goals were mostly external — like "I want to work at Google" because it sounded cool, or "I want to make more money." I eventually hit some of those goals. I had a great time working overseas at Shopify. Collaborate with cool company like Yahoo, Wealthsimple, and much more. Eventually, I made it up the career ladder to a Head of Design.

But as I reach my 30th birthday, I started questioning a lot of things. Honestly, what's the point of having more and more money? What would I even do with it?

Long story short, I quit my job in 2022.

I've been trading my time with money. I don't want to do that anymore. After quitting my job, I got a few interesting job offers. But I no longer see any point in climbing the career ladder or joining an even bigger company.

Not gonna lie — first 3 months were tough. Salary was an addiction, hah! I had no idea what to do. Mostly because I've been working too much and never invested in my own interest. I remember spending a lot of time daydreaming. What should I do next?

One day, I stumbled into an entirely new world about game and programming. I was like, "Whoa, it's been years since I play any game." I started to read that some people create a game solo. And I started to wonder, "Can I make a game?"

That was a turning point. I realize I can just set any goal and go for it.

Creative freedom is awesome

So I began learning to code. I made 2 macOS apps so far. I was honestly surprised that I can teach myself programming. I'm not the best programmer, but I have enough patient to learn the fundamental. When I was younger, I'd lose interest as soon as a subject got complicated.

I want to make a lot of stuff: games, books, websites, apps, and some new ideas. I want to explore my childhood hobbies — drawing, animation, and more.

This is the best feeling I've ever feel so far. Knowing that I can pick a project I'm passionate about and give it my full effort. My favorite days are when I can spend 8 hours alone in my studio, pausing only for lunch and a workout.

This is a perspective

I'm probably a stranger for you. I'm not saying you should quit your job. If you want to take anything from this post:

• Work hard, save enough money, and invest that money.
• Live frugally, cut unnecessary cost, and know your monthly spending.
• Have hobbies. Even if you work full-time in a company.
• Invest in yourself more!
• Choose one small project, dive deep, and have fun.
• Finish it and publish it — even if no one notices.
• Have at least 1 hour to daydream, reflect, and journaling.

How do you survive financially?

Some friends asked me this. Honestly, I barely have any income.

My short answer is: I've worked since I was 19. I've saved enough over the years, invested some of it on stocks and bonds, and now I can live off that. I've been living frugally since I was a kid, so my monthly expenses aren't big. I have no kids, and my wife has her own income — that helps.

Every month, my wife would prepare a raw food for our cats, that's probably my biggest monthly spending. Hah! Just kidding.

With a warm handshake in thought,

Budi