When People Ask Me What I Do For a Living

It′s complicated. Well, not really. Not for me, but it is for most people who are used to the idea of having a "job". A place where you go every day and exchange your time for money. This fixed schedule doesn′t leave any time for you to really pursue anything else in your life. This "job" defines you. It′s "what you do". You identify with it.

I′ve had many jobs over the course of my life. When I was still in school, I would look for a job every summer break since I was fifteen. I was actually excited to have a job, because it allowed me some independance. I would use the money I made to buy things I wanted that my parents wouldn′t give me.

I hadn′t yet grasped the notion that money could work for you.

Like the majority of people, I was brought up with the notion that you had to exchange a certain amount of your time for a fixed amount of money, and having extra money meant you made small sacrifices every month in order to put some money from your monthly paycheck aside, that would sit in the bank, in a "savings" account. That was an honest living.

At the time, I thought only the super rich invested their money. In a way, it′s kind of true. Today the majority of the middle class has little to no investing power. Most of them are in debt, not owning anything they have. They′re still paying off their big house, their flashy car, last year′s exotic holidays, and, earlier on, their wedding.
Because if you get married, you have to have a big, beautiful wedding.

And they live their "normal" lives exchanging their time to pay off everything that society tells them they need.

Rant aside, I own my own home, and live off the dividends of a small inheritance I received in my early twenties, and investments made during my lifetime. I have run into a few people that think I´m priviledged. I´ve even been called lucky. But I don´t believe in luck. I crafted my life by not squandering what was given me. I´ve built up what was given me.

I own a used car, though, that takes me from point A to point B when I need it, and I live way below my means.
It′s not because I′m frugal, or careful with money. It′s more because there are very little material things I want. Sure, I′ll one day buy a bigger house when my husband and I decide to start a family. But for now, the only thing I want are experiences, health, love, self growth, knowledge.
Things that money cannot buy.

A few years ago, my husband and I owned a small business that required our full time attendance. So, when people asked me what I did, I would say "I′m a small business owner". This made social gatherings a lot easier.
But we eventually sold it and made other investments that didn´t require time investment.

I often wondered if we had done the right thing. Over time I became more and more sure we had. For years after that sale, though, when people asked me what I did, I would still say I was a small business owner, because I didn′t know what to tell people. If I said "I don′t do anything", they would understand that I was unemployed.

It´s true, though. I am not employed. Even filling out certain forms is challenging, I have to choose the option closest to my case, which is so far off anyway. The world is not designed for people like us. Not yet, anyway.

Truth is, I′m a private person. I don´t want to tell people about how I earn a living.
So I sometimes lie.

Work has been redefined for me. I still don´t really know how to answer "what do you do?", or "how´s work?". My answer varies depending on the audience. I´m always working, though. Always learning, always searching for that next project that I will dedicate my time and money to. I just don´t call that "work".
So, do I work?
I guess I don´t.

Now, when people ask me what I do for a living, I just say "I do a lot of things".