I am a military spouse who has swiveled my whole career and so happy to have done it

I met my husband now by finishing my master’s degree and entering a doctoral program in public administration and politics. My goal was to become a university professor and teach. He was at the medical school.

However, he was also in the navy and would return to active service in a few years after completing his studies. After our marriage, I knew that being a track teacher permanently was as a career option as long as he was in active service, so I abandoned higher education.

Even secondary education would be difficult, trying to make a license and find jobs that have lined up with our moving timing.

The average family of soldiers moves every two and a half years, but it is common to move more frequently. We ended up moving seven times for military reasons during the 14 years he was in the Navy, through his enlisted mandate and officer.

During these years, I found a new path and it was the best thing for my career.

I started independent writing as a stampede and I transformed it into a career

Like any self -respecting millennium, I initially struck Google to get help in searching careers at a distance. A university professor had told me once I was a good writer, so I looked for known resources and mentors for independent writing.

At first, it was lateral agitation. I worked full time as marketing in a insurance brokerage house for a stable income. I am independent in nights and weekends while evolving my network.

I did not have any commercial training and I had to learn any test by fire, in particular by creating work samples, learning to present myself, to the selection and management of customers, to myself, and much more.

After 13 months and a lot of hard work, I was doing enough to leave my day job and go while independent writer.

My career challenges and my pivot are not unique: military spouses face high unemployment and sometimes discrimination with traditional jobs in progress. Estimates vary, but the unemployment rate of military spouses is at least 22%, much higher than the national average.

Make this career change was sometimes overwhelming, frustrating and difficult

Like some military spouses, marrying my husband meant leaving my previous career objectives and this associated identity behind. Having long imagined a life as an educator, I was alone but also determined.

In the two years following the full -time gable, I had set up my six -digit solo company by increasing my marketing and my diversifying me in project management, marketing and execution strategy, and as director of chief operations and director of marketing.

Although it is difficult to leave my previous career objectives, after me, after this new path opened me doors that I never imagined.

To date, I have worked with hundreds of companies, I was the main speaker of the annual launch of annual Upwork employees (A Freelance Job Board), said three TEDX discussions on independent and distance work and published five commercial and career books.

I also experienced what I would never have been presented differently, including the accommodation of Podcast and the production and learning of the advertising strategy of the Facebook team.

Pivoting was the best thing for my career

My husband is a civilian now, but military life has given us an incredible community of members of active services, veterans, spouses and caregivers with whom we continue to stay in touch today.

I supervised and offered support for free entrepreneurship to dozens of other military spouses who needed help to enter distant or independent work.

Although I ended up leaving my original doctoral program, I returned to higher education in 2022 and I am currently writing my thesis on motivation factors and risk management strategies used by full -time freelancers for my doctorate in business administration – as a personal objective.

Laura Briggs is a freelancer and author of five books, including “How to Start Your Own Freelance Writing Business” and “Six Figure Freelancer”.