I’m an amateur photographer, and have learned that it takes a lot to get a good picture. There are many variables: exposure settings, subject, lens selection, lighting, foreground, background, focus, etc. Here is one of my favorites: The subjects are 3 of my 4 kids…my Arrows. The reason for my company name. And part of the reason for going out on my own.

I used to commute 100 miles a day to work at a job that I was not enjoying, now I walk down to my basement office. Lunch is upstairs with my family, its not at the nearest restaurant with co-workers. Although I am not making money yet, I am not spending $5-6k on gas and $3-4k on lunch and Starbucks each year.

My focus is not on being the next famous software developer or internet personality. I just want to provide for my family by doing interesting work that I enjoy. My focus is on revamping my career without excluding my God and my family. In fact, I would like to include them in my work, to seek their input so that we can grow together.

Tim O’Reilly stated it this way “I wanted more control of my life than I could get in a “normal job”. I wanted work to fit in, not to dominate; to support, not to lead the pattern of my life.” Generally, when men meet, one of the first few questions is, “What kind of work do you do?” Nothing wrong with that question, but we seem to measure our lives by our career. We are deemed successful in life if we are successful in work. I would prefer to be successful in work because I am successful in life.

My new focus: Life should be an integration of the three areas that so often are separate: work, family, faith. I want my work to be my life, not a separate life. I want my family to be my life, not a separate life. And I want my God to be my life, not a separate life.