I took a year off work nearly 4 years ago now. It began on October 6, 2015 and ended on December 5, 2016. I often refer to this period as my “mini-retirement.”
Just yesterday, though, I was reflecting on my mini-retirement and how unwilling I’d be to let my money dwindle like that again. In truth, I was in a dark place during that year off, and probably for another year or so after that. That was the real reason I took the time away from work. I stopped caring about everything.
I should’ve worked a part-time job instead of taking a year off work
As you may know, I recently started working a part-time job.
I’m fortunate that it pays well enough to afford more time to blog.
Although it has only been a short period of time, it’s already beginning to feel similar to the lifestyle I was living during the year off.
Work is revolving around my life instead of the other way around.
Anyways, the main reason I took a year off was for personal development. The 9 to 5 was too much for me at the time. I was too distracted by my own thoughts to maintain the standard of work I was accustomed to, and the work was too unfulfilling to truly distract me from my own thoughts. I needed a new muse.
In turn, I decided to resign without much of a plan. Since I was working as a stock broker at the time, and because my ego wouldn’t allow me to admit the problems I was facing, I started day trading.
Shortly after a trip to Mexico, I decided to start this blog to document my trades. The posts are still available if you care…
Trading did a good job of distracting me for about 4 months, but I soon realized that I didn’t like trading. I was always a long term dividend investor!
It wasn’t because I was bad at trading either—I made money. It just wasn’t enough to live on. And I was drawn to blogging.
Unfortunately, by the time I figured that out, I had less money than when I started my year off. Trading was keeping my money afloat, however, I knew I’d have to go back to work eventually.
What I should’ve done was get a part-time job like I have now so I could focus on blogging. But instead, I ended up back at the bank. Nevertheless, I gained a skillset there that I didn’t have before, and I also met some really dope people, so I don’t regret it at all.
But working a part-time job would have been the best way to hold onto the small fortune I had built up.
My Dividend Income Business Would’ve Been Elite By Now
The most obvious disadvantage from my year off work was that I had to stop dividend investing. Worse, I had to withdrawal funds. 🙁
Frankly, it has taken 3 years to get back to the same level. And I sold stocks that would’ve been a lot higher by now. Stocks like Coca-Cola, Walmart, Proctor & Gamble, Royal Bank, Apple and more.
Based on where my portfolio was at, and if I added my current portfolio, I would’ve have been in a really good situation for a guy my age. And that’s without including income that would’ve been earned and saved if I kept working in 2016.
Nevertheless, I take pride in the fact that I was able to accumulate enough money to take a year off in the first place. It’s kinda cool that I was able to do it twice as well.
But obviously, it’s slightly painful to imagine how much money I would’ve had if I maintained the same pace.
Also, it was embarrassing to begin again and post such small dividend income updates at first. I mean, I had been a mutual fund advisor and stock broker, and I knew I was capable of investing, but I was posting small figures so it became hard to build trust.
The decline of my dividend portfolio was the saddest part of my year off.
I could’ve owned a house instead of a year off
Although I lived somewhat frugal during my year off, admittedly, there were points that I got out of control with spending. I even wrote about how money is just a tool and how easy it was to become careless.
Another option I could’ve considered was buying a home…
I would’ve had to sell my stocks. But I had enough money for a small down payment.
Perhaps buying my own home and moving to the suburbs could have been the change I needed to stay working.
Changing the blog’s direction
Another disadvantage was that I had to alter the blog’s direction a few times.
I started off discussing my day trades and briefly mentioned my dividend investing strategy. But when my money started to get lower, I had to change the blog’s direction, which is why I started focusing on the blogging/writing/social media side of blogging.
On the other hand, I may not have had the blog without the year off. And I most definitely wouldn’t have had the story I have now.
To be honest, though, I already had an idea for a blog called “my dividend business” prior to taking a year off work.
I used to read Dividend Mantra and Dividend Growth Investor on my commute to work in the morning. I would dream of working on a blog and dividend investing each and every morning. At least I’m closer to that life now.
Concluding Thoughts – Why Taking A Year Off Work Was A Mistake
Ultimately, I don’t regret the year off because I really needed it.
I learned a lot about myself and about life during that time. I was young enough to do whatever the hell I wanted, which is a luxury many retirees simply do not have.
Plus, that time off has become a central point in my life. I’ll always remember it. It has even superseded college at this point, because I was just a damn kid in college back then. I was almost an adult during my year off lol.
In conclusion, my year off was truly awesome AF. However, I can’t deny the damage it did to my portfolio and the prospect of owning a home. I really don’t think owning a home is that difficult if you start saving young, even in today’s age.
Moreover, I know the past doesn’t mean sh*t, other than to learn from past mistakes. All that matters is the present and how to handle the future.
But I wanted to write a post to reflect on why taking a year off was a mistake…
I am not a licensed investment or tax adviser. All opinions are my own. This post contains advertisem*nts by Google Adsense. This post also contains internal links, external links to trusted sites and RTC social media accounts, and may contain affiliate links.
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