Why the scenic route?

I've gradually been taking myself out of the proverbial 'fast lane' for years. It didn't start deliberately. Each year, I've just found myself more passionate about travel planning, making gifts for babies being born, and nurturing fledgling family traditions.

Several years ago, when I was pregnant with Evan, some of my closest girlfriends from Kellogg came to visit me in Atlanta for a baby shower weekend. We were up late one night talking when one of my friends asked the group if we felt that our Kellogg experience was worth the investment. For me, that was an easy question. Business school was a steep investment in time, money and opportunity cost; however, I'd met Charlie there, and I was carrying our first child, so it was well spent!

What I didn't realize during that conversation was that I'd also picked up a valuable intangible at Kellogg, one that is helping me transition to stay-at-homedom. Ironically, in a hive swarming with type-A's, I learned that achievement wasn't the only, or even best, path to fulfillment. I spent a good portion of my time making social connections (some call it partying) and seeking new experiences, and I have absolutely no regret over earning my first C in my last quarter there!

So today, in my first week on Charlie's payroll, I'm reminding myself of the reasons I've decided to step out of corporate life.

• I want my family to be more connected to our community and to have time to spend making it a better place.
• I want to ensure that my children's behavior meets my expectations as they begin to assert more and more independence.
• I want our days to have a strolling, not a sprinting, pace.

Over the next several weeks, I'm going to be choosing how to fill the time I used to spend at my desk or in meetings. I'm challenging myself to keep the above reasons in mind as I do.