Amid a job market deeply disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, some professionals are choosing to change their formal job in order to cope with the difficult situation.
The 31-year-old male nurse, Josh Dorgan, stars in a success story among the thousands of Americans who have lost or quit their job due to the pandemic crisis. Dorgan was a pediatric nurse and hospital unit manager in a city in Nebraska until he discovered that he could earn a better salary trading cryptocurrencies.
The healthcare professional told Bloomberg his story . It all started in 2018, when Dorgan first entered the world of digital currencies. He had come across a report indicating that B itcoin had reached a price of USD $ 2,000. The news caught his attention and prompted him to do more research on the digital currency.
“It was a great opportunity to get involved with cryptocurrencies as soon as possible,” the nurse told the Insider medium.
Nursing a trader of Bitcoin
However, the decision to leave his job in the hospital to dedicate himself fully to operations with digital currencies would come two years later, with the coronavirus epidemic. The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in the United States in early 2020 complicated things for Dorgan. He told the media that keeping both jobs - nurse and crypto trader - became more difficult.
It was really hard sitting in my office making a few hundred dollars a day or whatever and then doing a [cryptocurrency] trade on my lunch break and making all day salary in five minutes.
The US has remained at the top of the list of nations most affected by the global health crisis. The high number of infections has collapsed hospitals, clinics and health centers across the country. Also the volume of staff has fallen short for the number of cases to treat and, in some cases, doctors have had to double shifts to meet the high demand.
Possibly the increase and the pressure of work, added to the possible fears about the risk of contagion, motivated Dorgan to make his decision. In mid-2020, and after consulting with a financial advisor, the nurse decided to quit his job. Although before, he also made sure he had enough money saved ” in case it didn’t work out,” he told Insider.
While admitting she misses her hospital patients, Dorgan said she is “very happy” with her decision. He now earns seven figures, has bought a vacation home, and has more time to care for his newborn son . She was also able to get herself a routine that is better for her health and includes exercise and meditation, something she says she has ignored for years. In addition, she has also taken up new hobbies such as home renovation projects.
“Of course I miss taking care of children [in the hospital], but I can help people in other ways by teaching them how markets work,” he told Insider. He added that he has invested in some of the major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether , as well as traditional markets.
An unusual case of success, but not the only one
Dorgan’s case is unusual, because although large numbers of Americans are reluctant to return to their formal jobs, not all seem to be finding beneficial employment alternatives. In the same Bloomberg report, which seeks to gauge the sentiment surrounding the current US labor crisis, nine other unemployed citizens recounted their stories.
The group, made up mostly of professionals, was reluctant to accept a part-time position when what they needed was a full-time one. They also indicated dissatisfaction with the salary offers, which they say are significantly lower than before the pandemic and say they live with government aid. Others said they feared catching the virus if they returned to work.
While Dorgan’s case is unusual, it is not the only one. More and more people are joining the cryptocurrency space to generate profits either through asset trading or by taking advantage of growing trends; such as decentralized finance platforms (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFT), or even meme currencies.
A few months ago, Cryptoreportage reported the story of a 33-year-old man who became a millionaire after investing in the cryptocurrency Dogecoin (DOGE). He’s not the only one who has made a lot of money from the doggy meme token. In May, a senior manager at Goldman Sachs bank , who had worked for the company for 14 years, decided to quit his job after making a fortune with DOGE.
