So I have come to the realization these past few weeks that job happiness is just a tad bit more important to me right now than pay and benefits and other things, and this will become more apparent as I am in a job that is paying me competitively and will afford me the luxury of actually slipping out of debt and into a much more financially comfortable position for the first time since...well...ever, really.

But there is more to life than slaving away at a job for 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week. That's 1/3 of each day for 5 days...and 1/5 of a week spent at work...at a JOB! From now until I retire, that is at least 1/5 of my life spent at work with work people in a work environment earning money to spend during the other 4/5 of my life. That's crazy!

So yeah, I've realized that I hate when life slips by and is wasted, and participating in a job that is not making me happy is a waste.

However, that realization means brings forth the next question: what is job happiness to me?

Ahh, now that's the rub! And that's also the soul-searching, painful, difficult question to answer. This reminds me of college where I felt the weight of such an important decision as my major study, and thus career, and it totally dominated my thoughts for many months before I saw the light and clawed my way closer to self-enlightenment. This is just much the same thing, and the next stage in my journey, and while I hope it is not as painful as my search in college, I hope that it ends with full realization of what I want, the energy to pursue it, and the happiness of achieving it and moving on with other decisions in life...one step closer to happiness, one more major decision behind me and conquered.

That is where I am right now...and while the pain of this search is possibly just starting, at least I now am lessening the burden of financial worry and eliminating that from my stress levels...making that other 4/5 of my life just a little bit better.