Well, here we are. I just quit my full-time healthcare job to jump into the decentralized world. My thoughts and feelings are all over the place at the moment. Part of me is experiencing excitement, nervousness, and, quite frankly, relief. After spending a decade in my previous field, I am more than ready for change. On the other hand, thoughts of worry creep in as I walk away from a stable job. I can’t help but think, “I’m either making the best or the worst decision of my life.” Time will tell. All I can do now is forge ahead into the unknown and do my best to enjoy the journey.

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So how did I end up here?

This is a great question. My life thus far has been somewhat unconventional. Let’s start back at the beginning. I grew up in a small town in New Jersey and was one of two children whose parents divorced early on. Things were rocky growing up, but I believe most of my positive attributes are due to not having it easy as a kid. I am resilient, independent, and a realist through and through. I love the motto “fake it till you make it” and have used this as a cornerstone to encourage myself to jump into things throughout my life, whether or not I was ready for them.

Fast forward to high school graduation; I was unsure what I wanted to do with my life but decided to go to college to be a Physical Therapist. In my sophomore year of college, Occupational Therapy was introduced to me by a senior advisor. I ended up switching majors, going on to graduate with my master’s in Occupational Therapy. I immediately jumped into the workforce as a pediatric OT in various settings all over the United States for about eight years, finding myself thrust into leadership positions within just 1 to 2 years of getting into the field.

In 2019, I entered the tele-health field and was asked to take over as the Director of Clinical Affairs within a year of joining the company. This was a genuine “fake it till you make it” moment for me. Ready or not, I jumped into that role full force. It was filled with trials and tribulations but also tremendous personal growth and learning. The opportunity pushed me beyond what I believed I was capable of. On the flip side, it was exhausting and pushed my psyche into the uncharted territory of significant anxiety and stress. The highs and lows were extreme and unhealthy at times. As with most healthcare-related jobs, the burnout factor eventually crept into my everyday life. I finally decided to “be selfish” and make a change. If there is anything I’ve learned over the past few years, life’s too short to be unhappy and only live for the weekends. The fact that I am incredibly privileged to be able to do this is not lost on me. Therefore, I’m going to make the absolute most of it!

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But why the decentralized world?

I happen to be married to the kindest, most loving partner, who is an eternal optimist and dreamer. He’s quite the opposite of me. He loves thinking of big ideas and learning about the “next big thing.” We are the perfect balance for each other as he pushes us into the exciting unknown, and I help anchor us to the things we are good at along the way. These attributes have helped us weather the storm of moving every 2-3 years for his job. We’ve lived on the west coast, east coast, and midwest in large cities and small towns. It’s been quite the wild ride, but we wouldn’t change a thing. My partner has been super interested in the crypto world and blockchain technology since 2016. Since that time, I’ve learned about the movement towards decentralization and how it may impact or, at this point, is impacting the future. Lucky for me, one of his many big ideas recently gained some traction (www.listofdaos.com). Enough traction that we’ve decided to jump into this space head first to see what we can grow.

The goal of the Decentralized Diary is to document my adventure into the decentralized world. I’ll be writing about the good, the bad, and the ugly I experience along my journey. By doing this, I hope to help others interested in getting into the space or those who want to learn more about Web3, blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, DAOs, NFTs, and DeFi; the list is endless and growing each day. Don’t have a clue about any of these things or never even heard of them? Not to worry! We are creating a community so we can learn together in a safe space where there are no stupid questions.

I hope you will come along on this ride with me! Don’t forget to subscribe to be notified when new entries are posted. Have ideas about what you’d love to see featured in future entries? Send me a tweet!

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Follow me on Twitter: Erin @ the Decentralized Diary https://twitter.com/decentradiary

LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/decentra_list