Guest Author - Kim Kenney

There are all kinds of reasons people don’t want children.

Some actually don’t like kids. Some cherish peace and quiet. Some have just never felt the motherly instinct.

Still others don’t have time for children, because they are nurturing their careers.

My own career is extremely important to me, and while it isn’t the main reason I don’t want kids, the extra time available in my life sure does help fuel my career.

Think about it. Careers are how we identify each other. What is almost always the first question someone asks you at a cocktail party?

“What do you do?” (Even before they start prying about whether or not you have kids!!)

Everyone has to set priorities, no matter what your goals are in life. For me, I have always known what I wanted to be when I grew up. Everything in my life has pointed toward a single goal.

I sometimes think people look at my life and think that it is “charmed” somehow. But the reality is, I have worked for every single thing I have achieved, and I have taken every possible opportunity available to me. I’ve worked tirelessly toward achieving my goals.

And that takes a heck of a lot of energy!

When I get home at night from my full time job, lately I have been focusing on my “second career” as a freelance writer. I am working on a few short stories, a newspaper article, and a novel. Plus my work here at BellaOnline.

Every night I tumble into bed, thoroughly exhausted from my job, my hobbies, my volunteer work, my husband, and my two cats. I have no idea how my sister keeps going, working full time with a husband who works an opposite shift and a one year old! (They are essentially like two single parents!)

My job, my writing, and my hobbies sustain me, probably in the same way that children sustain parents who have always wanted kids. But I’m just not wired that way.

I’ve always wanted a career, and I am proud to say that I have one. To me, I have given birth to this career, cared for it, fed it, nurtured it, seized every opportunity for it. And as a result, it has grown into a something I can truly be proud of. Sounds a lot like parenting, doesn’t it?

I’m always amused when people accuse the child free of being too lazy for parenthood. I don’t know about you, but I don’t spend a heck of a lot of time with my feet up, eating bon bons! I’m a busy woman!

Recently I’ve realized that my career has taken over a bit, and I have started re-ordering my priorities yet again. I want to spend more quality time with my husband, write more, and have more fun!

But I could never see myself giving up my career. I’ve worked too long and too hard for it.

Life is a matter of choosing between all kinds of choices. Should I rent an apartment in the city or buy a house in the suburbs? Should I buy a new car or take a trip to Fiji? Should I have children or not?

All of these choices make us who we are. Everyone is free to decide what is best for them. For some, that may mean children. For others, a career.

And guess what? Everyone is still OK, no matter what they choose!

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If you have a story about your career that you’d like to share, please send me an email! I’d love to profile some of the Married No Kids readers in future articles.