Off the Clock, On the Mark™ – Why I Left, What I’m Building, and Why You’re Invited

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In case nobody told you today:

It’s okay to want more.

More time.

More peace.

More you.

If you're still setting alarms just to sit in traffic, answering emails that should’ve never been sent, or nodding through meetings that suck the marrow out of your bones — you’re not broken.

You’re awake. And you’re not alone.

After decades in federal service — soldier, civilian, three agencies, travel to more places than I can count — I walked away.

Not because I hated it.

Not because I couldn’t hack it.

But because the fire that got me in had become a flickering pilot light.

One I kept relighting with caffeine and public service platitudes.

That works — for a while. Until it doesn’t.

I was the “go-to guy.” The fixer. The calm in the storm.

The one who made it work, handed it off, and moved on to fix the next thing.

Senior Executive Service. Trusted. Relied on. Respected. And exhausted.

Eventually, I realized I wasn’t just tired — I was done.

ot in the dramatic, “flip a desk and storm out” kind of way. (Although in hindsight, that would’ve been immensely satisfying.)

It was quieter than that. Memo by memo. Little cut after cut.

Mission drift.

Change-for-change’s-sake.

Death by a thousand soul-sapping PowerPoints.

Then the stillness hit — a whisper deep in my gut: “You’ve done enough. Now do something for you.”

So, there I was, a place I had stood more than a few times, thinking, thinking, thinking, then no more thinking, I took the leap.

Off the Clock, On the Mark™ isn’t just a clever title. It’s a mindset.

A declaration. A permission slip — for me, and maybe for you — to stop clocking in for systems that no longer feed your purpose… and start showing up for yourself.

What This Blog Is

This space is where I unpack that journey.

Some days: practical stuff — tips for navigating federal retirement, managing finances, switching gears, or writing ECQs (yes, I still got it).

Other days: road stories, porch builds, spiritual musings, barroom philosophy, drywall mishaps, or the sweet absurdity of figuring out how not to burn the eggs.

And sometimes… it’ll just be human.

Who This Blog Is For

If you’re a fellow fed standing at the threshold of something new — or you’ve already leapt and are still midair wondering what the hell you just did — welcome.

If you’re just curious how a guy who once played the SES game now spends his time chasing sunsets, stacking firewood, and blogging about what matters — welcome, too.

If you've never touched the wild world of public service but want a peek under the hood... hop on in.

Spoiler: what you think it is, isn't even close.

What to Expect

• Real talk, not buzzwords

  
  

• Some sass, a lot of soul

  
  

• Posts that wander from porch-building to bourbon-fueled reflections on God, government, and growing older

  
  

• Lessons, scars, and the kind of freedom that doesn’t fit on a spreadsheet

  
  

Mostly, expect me. Unfiltered.

Post-fed. And finally breathing again.

Off the Clock, On the Mark™ is for the ones ready to leave the grind (or the burnout) behind and start crafting a life that’s lived on purpose.

With purpose.

(RRR) — Retired. Rewired. Ready™.

Come along.

Let’s see what’s out there.

–– Glen

The job ends.

The mission shifts.

But the purpose — that’s still yours to discover.

It is about building something new on the foundation you just spent most of your adult life building.

It’s about rediscovering who you were before the noise,

and creating who you’re supposed to be after it.

"The difference is what you do with this time.”

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