“Was your career transition quick, smooth, and a clean break?” (Spoiler Alert: No, no, and no.)

My name is Bradley Charbonneau and I am a recovering WordPress designer.

I just wrote “recovering” because I think that’s what they say. But you know what? I’m not “recovering,” I just added that for drama. I’m “recoverd.” I’m done, I’m beyond, I’ve moved on. There you go.

For 10 years, I had a marketing agency. We did lots of design, but also lots of tech. Frankly, the thing I still get the most questions about is tech. WordPress, domains, hosting, email SMTP servers, blah, blah, blah.

I care less and less about tech as I care more and more about being an author.

Yes, I still use WordPress (and love it). But I don’t care how it works, when things are updated, or what new features they have under the hood–unless they directly influence my writing career.

I mention this as I get lots of questions about transitioning from one career to another.

1. How long did it take?
2. Was it smooth?
3. A clean break?

Answers:

1. Longer than I hoped.
2. No.
3. NO.

I don’t know if I truly believed that it would all “go away” as I had hoped (quickly, painlessly, and without anything to do about it ever again), but if I’m completely honest, I’m not even sure I thought it would ever even slightly go away.

I was trapped, stuck, floating in a vicious circle not unlike the whirlpool that flushes things down the toilet.

But I’m out. I’m done. I don’t care. No, really, I don’t care.

I don’t care what version of WordPress you’re using. I don’t care how important your transition is to Squarespace. I don’t care if you use Avada or Divi or want to be hosted at BlueHost or GoDaddy.

I’m done.

There is a very limited (and tiny) space in my brain for that information and it’s pretty much filled up with what I have in there (for the record: I host with GoDaddy (branded) Managed WordPress, use Divi, and would cry if I had to leave my grandfathered Google Apps for email).

In case you’re wondering where this post comes from, I just got an email from an old client with some question that transported me back, sort of like a shot of moonshine might do for an alcoholic, to the purgatory of my former self. I answered it, passed it along to someone else, and moved on.

But there is still residue. Your past has passed, but it can take some time to be fully rid of it. Still, it’s my mission and I will not give up until it’s all gone. Almost there.

In fact, this year, 2018. It’s gone.

Thanks, that’s just what I needed this morning.