The anniversary that I didn't reach

Had I not retired in February, today would have been my 11 year anniversary at Google. It's poignant for me to think about that milestone strictly from the perspective of what it meant to work for such a great company. But from the perspective of what my life is like now, it's also a reminder that I made the right call when I decided it was time to leave. Hitting 10 years in 2015 was a very fulfilling milestone that came right as I began to understand I'd done what I needed to do in my existing role with plenty of positive impact and that it was time to move on to "something else". The freedom that decision gave me triggered a avalanche of thinking that would not have happened with such clarity had I maintained notions of continuing on some career trajectory to my next anniversary. Ultimately it led to the realization that the something else I wanted to do was not work for a living any more, even though opportunities to do so weren't lacking. So I was happy I left when I still had something to offer if I'd wanted to stay, and before I'd reached the point where I might no longer enjoy the work or be as productive as I wanted. Everything that has happened since is just like gravy on a chocolate cake.