I Quit! I once was a tenured professor. I walked away. Who quits tenure and a lifetime guarantee for a paycheck, flexible schedule, and benefits? ME! What I saw about the University as an employer and system from the inside made me eventually want to get out of the systemic problems. Things have to go drastically awry to make someone walk away from that kind of safety in our uncertain world. After 5 years I can finally sleep better and feel okay in sharing. This is my story of how I realized I was in a bad work environment (and the overall bad system of academia) and the decisions, thoughts, strategies that I went through to figure out whether to stay or go. One of the things I did was seek help - not from HR because they aren't helpful, not from the Union because they kept saying that I just needed to learn how to get along, and not from friends because I was so isolated and tired from the constant psychological warfare. I found a good book to be a great asset and I review a part of it in this video. There is a questionnaire that helps you to identify the parts of your situation. I walk through those 15 questions and relate what was happening to me. "Take the Bully by the Horns: Stop Unethical, Uncooperative, or Unpleasant People from Running and Ruining Your Life" by Sam Horn https://amzn.to/3tYlxRw If you are thinking about walking away from your current trajectory to forge a new path, know that you are not alone. From quiet quitting to the great resignation, many people are feeling that they are not being valued in their jobs. Maybe I was ahead of the time, but my story still can help at least one person out there. If you are thinking you need to shift gears and figure out how to do that, feel free to contact me and check out my site valsloan.com If you are thinking about going into teaching at the University level, my story may provide caution or questions to think about before you start that path or while you are in your interviews maybe you'll be able to identify a better place than I found myself in (more than once!). #iquit #iquitmyjob #lifeguidance #lifeafterquit #resign #resignation #toxicworkplace #toxicworkenvironment #metoo #lifecoach #lifechanging #stopbullying #toxicworkenvironment #positivity #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthmatters #advice #struggle #changecareers #walkaway #youarenotalone #bebrave #takeactionnow #realize

How can life lessons from water turn into a life philosophy? Breath and relax when the rug is pulled out from under you or the chaos is like a Class 5 rapid dragging you under into a darkness. In this video, I recount some of my stories including literally falling out of a raft on a Class 5 rapid (and surviving), and through those experiences, how I've developed a philosophy to navigate life's challenges, obstacles, and sometimes even sink into enjoy the calm moments too. How does this relate to "The Secret Life of Water"? This is not a review of this book, but a brief overview of the research of how positive or negative sounds, words, experiences impact water molecules. And maybe, how that can affect our bodies. Bonus content for the last 20 minutes is a series of short videos of various water scenes from calm to more flow, with reflections and maybe a few fish or ducks, and traditional water 'fountains'. Some scenes have interesting sounds of what was happening around me while filming. After making the decision to walk away from a career as a professor, I wanted to spend some time on my own to recover from the decade plus of toxic work environment so I traveled to Japan in 2018 to experience the Autumn season. I recently came across these videos I had made documenting the water moments I encountered. I felt that maybe that 5 year anniversary was something to celebrate as I've survived through the chaos of a real class 5 rapid and a related life challenge of that level of trauma. Here's "The Secret Life of Water" if you want to learn more about it: https://amzn.to/3FUdGH5 #lifelessons #lifechanging #watervideo #lifephilosophy #lifeguidance #japaninspiration #watersounds #inspiration #mindfulness #mindfulliving #valsloan #lifeofwater #waterislife

Go slow. Get a dose of nature. Spend some time watching and listening to water. Feel the benefits of nature. Enjoy this little slice of the world in what's called 'The Western Highland Rim' of Tennessee. The foothills of Appalachia with a lazy river. Do you ever say 'if you could, you would'? Now is the time to escape the grind if even for just 33 minutes. Forest Bathing benefits. The next part of the book is a Yeats poem and a Shakespeare Sonnet. Followed by a short poem translated from Chinese. "The Poetry of Impermanence, Mindfulness, and Joy Paperback" – June 6, 2017 edited by John Brehm https://amzn.to/3FULm7K Going slow is hard in our fast paced world. Doing things for ourselves in high demand lives is hard to manage. Turning off tech may seem luxurious. Meditation is hard if you don't know how or can't carve out the time, and that's okay. I've been wanting to spend a bit more time on the land and this is a good excuse to share with y'all. It's mid-November. Lovely colors, contrasts, and stillness. Views of the buffalo river also from the bluff above. Motivational chat by Val your your disconnect to reconnect guide. If you are interested in a residency for artists, writers, designers, crafters, architects, or any other field that you need some focused time in nature, then consider applying to my residency program at www.sarasvati.space #forestbathing #poetryrecitation #waterview #river #soundsnature #disconnecttoreconnect #forestsounds #foresttherapy #lifeguidance #rippleeffect #bekindtoyourselfandothers #leaves #watersounds #rivers #naturewalk #naturewalking #poetry #walking #nature #naturelovers #tennessee #motivation #natureobservation #lifeguidance #lifelessons #goslow #mindfulness #mindfulliving #mindfulnessmeditation