Another Reminder of How Short Life Is

Rev. Dr. Kitty Boitnott, NBCT, RScP

Heart-Centered Career Transition and Job Search Coach | Life Strategies Coaching

If you know anything about me, you know that part of the reason I left teaching early is that I was impacted by the unexpected death of my father when I was 34. He was 63. He died in an accident, and it reminded me how fragile life is and how we should never take a day for granted.

I always wondered if he had known at the age of 60 that he had three more years to live what he might have done differently.

When I was 60, I had already decided to leave teaching six months before. I knew I was not interested in going back to the classroom, but I honestly didn't know what to do instead.

I considered what if I had only three more years to live? What would I want to do differently from that point?

And the answer was I wanted a job that I could love. I wanted to set my schedule. I didn't want to commute anywhere. Basically, I wanted to be my own boss. So, I decided to become a coach, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Sadly, I have received yet another reminder of just how short and fragile life is. My younger brother died last week very unexpectedly. Like our father, he died at the age of 63.

Now my brother was something of a maverick. He never played by the same rules that everybody else did. He never married, and for all intents and purposes, except while he was in college, he never left home. He looked after our mother after our dad died. When he lost his job because of the recession in 2010, he decided to forget about finding a new job. He lived off of his investments right up until the day he died.

He spent his days doing exactly what he loved to do--reading and writing and playing music. I have found journals that he has kept during COVID. They reveal the depth of his intellect and his curiosity about everything from politics to social commentary.

He was a gifted musician and artist.

This photo was taken on Thanksgiving Day in 2017. He didn't love having his picture taken, which accounts for his expression, and we don't have that many photos of him. But we will always have our memories. He has left behind his music, his artwork, and the memory of his hearty laugh when something tickled his fancy.

David Lewis Boitnott 

March 22, 1958 - May 9, 2021

While it sounds sad to say he died alone, you'd have to know him to realize that he died exactly as he would have wanted to. 

He was far too young, though.

His passing has been shocking because of the unexpectedness of it. As far as we know, he had not been sick. But because of COVID, I had not seen him since September. We may never know the cause.

But this event has been a stark reminder that life is too short and fragile to take a single day of it for granted.

None of us know how long we may have to make an impact on the world. And we all want to make an impact. It's part of our DNA. We want someone to know that we were here.

And we want to make a difference somehow.

That's why it is so tragic when people are caught up in jobs that they don't love. But they don't ever get around to making an effort to change because they don't know how to begin.

Changing your job or career after ten or twenty years can feel like a daunting task. I know. I have been there.

It is even more of a daunting prospect to think about staying stuck in a job or career that you dread going to or know isn't what you should be doing anymore.

It sounds trite, I know. "Life is short." 

But it's not trite. It's true.

You might be one of the thousands of teachers around the country who feel like this Pandemic Year was the last straw. You want to make a career change, but you don't know how or where to begin. If that sounds like you, you need to attend one of the free Masterclasses I am offering the first week in June.

Here is the schedule:

Tuesday, June 1, at 12:00 PM EST (9:00 AM PST)

Thursday, June 3, at  8:00 PM EST (5:00 PM PST)

Saturday, June 5, at 1:00 PM EST (10:00 AM PST)

They are all FREE to attend.

Now, I will offer an opportunity to sign up for the Jumpstart Your Job Search 2.0 Program. But you aren't obligated to buy anything if you attend the Masterclass.

And you will learn a ton about what you need to consider if you want to make a change in your career.

If you are interested in the course, our next group coaching cohort will be starting on June 7th. Just FYI.

The purpose of the course is to help teachers who want to leave the classroom leapfrog from where they are now--stuck teaching and no longer enjoying it--into the job or career of their dreams.

With my program, I can help you succeed sooner rather than later and avoid the mistakes most people make when just starting a job search. 

You will learn a lot, however, if you sit in on one of the Masterclasses. 

So sign up at https://event.webinarjam.com/register/26/27l48aml and mark your calendar.

Be there so you can start making the difference you want in you want now. 

What are you waiting for?

Until next time.