Why Words Matter

Okay, so I know that daylighting is an architectural term used to describe placing windows to bring in natural light. But I'm stealing it. I am using it to describe my "day job.” Feel free to borrow it. Here’s why.

I don't know about you, but I really dislike the term moonlighting, and, especially, side hustle, in describing the actual work that I am doing (NeverBroken, Powerhouse, IG, and EI). For me, personally, to call what I do anything less than my real work almost seems to slow it down or put it in a place that keeps it as a side gig in my head. But it is the star. Everything else just helps get us by. Even calling my daylighting gig my "job" sometimes feels inauthentic. It's what I do to pay the bills until my actual work starts paying for it all.

Not to diminish the importance of a day job. They are sometimes vital. For me, right now, in the face of divorce and five mouths to feed (four four-leggeds, and two of them very big), I am forever grateful for the opportunity I currently have. But I used to call my day work my drub job. Albeit, nothing is below me; but they detracted from time spent on my real work. And, yes, some of these jobs were quite demeaning. But they served their purpose. Yet in my current situation, I am forever grateful for many reasons, thus it has caused me to reassess how I refer to it in a more positive light.

What am I now that has caused this shift? I am a dog bather, believe it or not. I haven’t divulged this publicly yet for a variety of reasons; but, there, now I’ve said it. I work 40-50 hours a week, washing dogs of all types, sizes, hair types, temperaments, and personalities, along with drying, nail trimming/dremmeling, and brushing (as well as the less pretty details). I get beaten up by flailing pup feet, occasionally bitten, and scratched all day long. I am exhausted by the end, but I make it my mission to be the best and kindest darn dog washer out there. For me, it's all about the pups. Thankfully, my boss, a master groomer and kind-hearted dog lover, agrees.

So, to call my daylight position a drub job now seems inappropriate. I realized that I was previously sending the energetic message of ungrateful and suffering. Thus, although my current position is challenging, as daylighting positions go it is truly a gem and exactly what I asked for...a job that pays well, lets me take my two dogs in with me all day, and connect with and reassure doggos as my "work."  

The case that I am trying to make, while also revealing more of myself, is that words really DO matter, as does perception, especially in regard to where we are and where we want to be. The words we use to refer to our loves, our dreams, and our current situations send the universe signs and signals in an energetically charged language that is hard to ignore, especially considering how and when we use them (usually in excitement or exhaustion and frustration). In this case, it flips the script and magnetically pushes or pulls you toward what you want in both words and energy.

So, in my opinion, daylighting is my word for what I'm happy for, but maybe not quite as proud of as my own stuff, because there is so much more that I have in store. It says thank you, daylight thing, for all that you are, especially for being a stepping stone along the way.

Are you at this point in your life?

If so, what do you daylight as?

What is your real job and self?