Like most people, climbing has always been my hobby, it was something I enjoyed at the weekends, evenings and any spare time I had. Like most hobbies it always came second; exams at school came before national and international climbing competitions, university before the GB team and outdoor climbing and then of course I ventured into the world of work, which tends to be very time consuming! The ratio of work to climbing has always been the wrong way round but I enjoyed engaging in something other than rock climbing or competitions.
I got a great job after university that I really enjoyed for a few years. On paper it was perfect; 4 days a week, 15minutes walk from my house, working with friends and traveling around the world for meetings and events. What more could I ask for?
However, I realised one day when I was sat at my desk that I didn’t enjoy it very much, I was jealous and I was tired. I was jealous of my friends who were professional climbers, semi professional or just working a little less so they could pursue what they really loved.
I was climbing the best I ever had but I was pretty exhausted. Most days I would go straight from work to the wall, train, get home late, cook tea, go to bed and wake up what felt like 2minutes later to a horrible alarm! Annual leave (as most people can relate to) is a pain in the arse. It enabled me to go on one 3 week trip (dependent on the time of year) and 1 or 2 shorter trips. This added a lot of pressure; I could only choose one location and one goal abroad each year. If the trip didn’t go to plan then I had to wait a whole year until I got chance to visit again. It dawned on me one day that I would be about 50 before I had even scratched the surface on my never ending list of places to visit. This for some people isn’t necessarily a problem, but I wanted to give these climbing areas my best shot and I believe the time to do that is your 20s – and I just turned 26!
With these thoughts in mind, I knew I either needed to change my lifestyle or my climbing attitude and goals. After mulling these feelings over for the next few months I decided I was going to leave my job, find some freelance work and go climbing more.
Work crew in Vancouver
I have made it sound like a simple decision but I was totally gripped. I was gripped about leaving something so comfortable and stable for a lifestyle that was so uncertain and I wasn’t sure I could even properly fund. I am a worrier and I worry about every decision I make. I have never been one of those people that can make bold decisions and carry on without care in the world, but I also knew that if I didn’t go for it I would look back in a few years and regret it. So, I found myself some freelance work and with a gentle kick up the arse from some close friends and family I handed in my notice and took the first steps to a life with more climbing in.
Then something happened that I didn’t expect, I was fortunate enough to be offered a great contract from Arc’teryx. So I am now an Arc’teryx athlete, which, along with a bit of freelance work means I can now be flexible with my work enabling me to pursue my climbing a little more for the next few years.
I am proud of myself for taking the risk as it was one of the hardest decisions I have made and I was a decision that only I could make (no matter how much support and advice I received). Now let’s see how the work life balance pans out over the next few months…
Nice one Katy. I read somewhere the brain is pre-programmed to be resistant to change. There’s a quote that says ‘Comfort is the killer of creativity’ but I would say it is more like ‘Comfort is the killer of progress’.
Good luck 🙂
Happy for you, Katy! I’m still worrying and staying put for now, but I spend probably 85% of my time considering different work/play/life options. So glad you were able to make your move.