Pam Beesly from The Office Teaching Us a Little About Life

I’m a huge fan of the Office. And though I mainly watch it for its witty comedy, I think there’s a lot to learn from the characters in Scranton, Pa. For example, here’s a blurb of what Pam says to Jim when she decides to leave graphic design school:

[Jim walks outside at the end of the day and sees Pam] I’m coming back the wrong way. It’s not because of you. I don’t like graphic design. That’s it. Stop smiling! I really didn’t like it. It’s just, designing logos and stuff, and I miss Scranton. But it is not because I missed you. I just really wanted to come home. And, I know you said to come home the right way but, you can’t tell me what to do. Got it?

Pam says she’s wrong, but she’s actually got it right. Not all of us are defined by the jobs and careers that we have. Some of us value time with our family above all else. It’s all a choice that you have to make about what’s important to you. Pam realized that life isn’t just about her dreams of becoming a graphic designer – Scranton was part of her life too.

How often do we come to a crossroads where we have to pick between a passion and the people we love in our life? Hopefully, it doesn’t happen too often because it’s a really hard choice.

I don’t know that Pam made the right decision, but she’ll never know, right? She’ll never see the alternative reality where she’s a graphic designer. That’s the way these kinds of choices are – there’s no looking back. In the end though, it doesn’t matter to Pam because she came back to the people and the family that she loves, and now she’s happy.