don’t settle for the life you’ve been told to live.
create the one you were made for.
Greetings and salutations! We are Kim and Jason: best friends, husband and wife, parents of three kids, entrepreneurs, authors, retro t-shirt wearers, and partners in crime on a crusade to annihilate Adultitis in ourselves and the world! Kim is a former kindergarten teacher and noodle junkie. Jason is an artist, professional speaker, and cereal aficionado.
After falling in love, graduating college, and getting married, we entered the “real world” and quickly noticed a few things. Like the fact that a shocking number of grown-ups are inflicted with a disease we identified as Adultitis, which is the reason so many people “lead lives of quiet desperation,” as Thoreau astutely observed.
We lack adventure when we blindly adhere to rules that don’t exist.
We lack meaning when we settle for the status quo.
We lack joy when take ourselves too seriously.
This discovery led to the founding of The Cure Adultitis Institute and the creation of Escape Adulthood, a company and lifestyle brand that helps people rediscover the secrets of childhood in order to build better lives, businesses, and teams.
We started this movement because it’s hard to defeat Adultitis alone and there is power in numbers. In community we can borrow courage, affirmation, and inspiration from one another.
Escape Adulthood? I wish!
Escape Adulthood is a rallying cry. It’s not about escaping responsibilities or reality. Nor is it about paying your bills with Monopoly money, eating a strict diet of chicken nuggets, or putzing around with Play-Doh all day long (although we do love that smell!).
Rather, the “Adulthood” we recommend you escape from is the cynical, joyless, unadventurous version with all the stupid rules, the one that insists we always play it safe and take ourselves way too seriously. We actually believe the crazy notion that there is more to life than the busyness, stress and melancholy that is typical of most modern lives.
Escape Adulthood is the antidote to Adultitis and the cure for the common life.
On a Mission to Annihilate Adultitis.
That includes working with organizations to deliver speaking programs that drive innovation, prevent burnout, and achieve new levels of productivity. We also develop tools, host events, and make things to help individuals design lives that are less stressful and more fun. Everything is fueled by Jason’s whimsical artwork and it all began with a humble comic strip. (Download the amazing technicolor Escape Adulthood Brand Book for a more in-depth tour.)
We consider ourselves to be “professional reminderers.” The stuff we talk about is not rocket surgery, but these important principles are easy to forget amidst the hectic deluge of daily life. We ALL need reminders from time to time. Our greatest desire is to use our talents to share God’s love and impact lives by inspiring, entertaining, and encouraging people to rekindle their childlike spirit and create the life they were made for.
The Sappy Love Story
Now before it was an idea or a rallying cry, this all began as a simple love story. Jason first drew his lovable characters for his girlfriend Kim sometime before the turn of the century. They shared a kindred childlike spirit, and Jason used the drawings, which represented the couple as children, on many homemade (aka cheap) gifts designed to win Kim’s heart.
Luckily for him, this downright sappy ploy helped him to not only win her heart, but also her hand in marriage. The characters took on lives of their own and became stars in a comic strip. In 2000, we decided to build a company to share the comic strip and its inspiring message. The strip was officially retired in 2007, but the wild ride to rid the world of Adultitis has continued on at full speed.
Meet the team that helps us keep Adultitis on the run, peruse our bucket lists, and check out a brief timeline of the tumultuous and thrilling tale of a dream that turned into a movement that’s changing the world. Click here for a look at what we’re working on right now.
Giving Back
We are all about helping grown-ups of all ages to escape adulthood, but we are über passionate about making sure that the awesome, magical, and happy version of childhood we champion is never lost. That’s why we pledge 5% of all gross merchandise sales to an organization that helps improve the lives of kids all over the world.
Don’t Settle for a Paint-By-Number Life
We’ve spent our life together doing unconventional things. We moved to Madison without either of us having a job. We unschool our kids. Our daughter was on 34 flights during her first year of life. We do book tours at zoos and ice cream parlors.
This is where we live online. We want to help you eradicate Adultitis by offering real-world strategies, practical ideas, and permission to create a life filled with passion, wonder, and joy. We hope to spark intentional thinking that leads you to become who you are uniquely created to be and have as few “I wish I woulda’s” as possible.
We’re so glad you’re here.
Your friends,
P.S. Make your Escape!
Break free from the vile clutches of Adultitis and join the Escape Adulthood League, a vibrant, positive, and encouraging community that serves as a respite from the noise and negativity that dominates our world today. Besides meeting and connecting with other people just like you, you’ll find inspiration, thought-provoking conversations, and valuable perspective each and every day.
Meanwhile, join our small rebellion of freedom fighters by signing up for our free weekly dispatch filled with tips and inspiration for turning your life into a thrilling work of art.
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