There is nothing worse than doing something, day in, day out, that you hate.
Sitting in that cubicle, pushing papers, bored out of your skull, only to bring home a paycheck that barely meets your family's expenses.
OK, there are children starving.
But that doesn't make anything better in your here and now.
If you can improve your circumstances, you vow to give back.
You can create your own career.
There are pointers and shared experiences that can help you, an entrepreneur curriculum guide, if you will.
But there is no 'by the numbers' manual.
How to get there? First.
Consciously decide to pull yourself out of bitterness.
You are not alone.
Unemployment figures can tell you that at a glance.
The failure is in our upbringing.
We were raised to think that, if only, we worked hard enough, success was ours for the taking.
In times worse than today, that aphorism held true.
It doesn't any more.
As everything's gone global, the ability to control our own destinies is controlled by algorithms and information overload beyond comprehension.
Most of us don't know how to fix this personal dilemma.
It is deeply personal, not just financial.
Ashley Ambirge, author of the new e-book, You Don't Need A Job, You Need Guts, has nailed the solution: "The only real solution to our despair is not to work harder, but rather, to work better.
" Her answer is a 'humanistic' approach to solving the dilemma.
Ashley believes most of us want to do something that makes us feel good about making a contribution "worthy of the precious time we have left on this earth.
" Her answer? "We must create.
" Her point hits home.
I practiced law as a tax attorney for 25 years.
I watched my father die while his business became embroiled in litigation by a silent partner trying to grab more than its share while my family was dealing with life and death.
Resolution took 2 years.
Then it became time to address my non-existent marital partnership.
Long story short, the next thing that occurred was divorce.
Neither of these situations are highly unusual, but they were for me.
Both involved individuals who betrayed trust, who embraced a value system that I still don't understand.
It changed me.
I wanted to be someone better, not limited by my professional description.
Just because I could do it well, didn't make it worthwhile to forego precious parenting time with my children.
I now work happily from home, online.
I haven't abandoned the skills used in my prior life; I just use them differently.
Ashley Ambirge challenges us to "have the guts" to shake things up.
You can create your own career-online or off.
There is no entrepreneur curriculum guide but there is a community of colleagues who share daily.
Achieving success that performs-not just in terms of lucrative income but in terms of personal value-is possible.
Only you can decide if you need both to be happy.