How I grew the confidence to finally quit my job.
“I quit”. This is a line many of us dream of uttering at different times in our occupational journey. Whether you dream of quitting quietly or going big and going in style, one things remains the same; the timing. The questions that always nags is “when is the right time?” and it is an important question given the cost of living crises here in the UK. So when is the “right time”? It differs for us all but there are many more factors that can help you quit your job.
My journey began 18months before I handed in my notice at my previous job. I was miserable and finding no joy in my role, nor was I inetersted in pursuing further study to “climb the ladder” so at this point I knew it was time to create the exit plan. The biggest factors to consider in my exit plan were;
- Finances — Can I really afford to change career and potentially take a large paycut whilst staying committed to my current financial obligations?
- Children — How do I maintain their clubs and care if a new professions demands longer hours than I currently work?
- Career path — Can I find and change my career after committing to a completely different career for 16 years?
- Resilience — Do I have the resilience to go through a massive change after so many years doing the same thing?
All of these questions I pondered during the second lockdown, when it became clear to me that I wanted to try something new. I was lucky enough to land in a career as a 21 year old graduate and now at 37, with two children, a relationship and a house I want to try something different. The toughest question to answer has not been “when” but “what?”. What job am I qualified to do after spending 16 years in a single career? What job do I even want to do? These are still the toughest questions because they form an understanding of the need to earn money but the desire to find something that genuinely aligns with some of my interestes.
Children can make it seem impossible to disturb the status quo, and I hope I am not wrong in my pursual of a completely different enviroment and work life. As I grow older I realise that time moves regardless of the choices I make. There have been many occasions where I did not fulfil a choice because of “guilt” as a single mother to one of your children. I do a lot for my children because a lot was done for me, but the best I can do for my children is show them that it is possible to find work that you enjoy, or at least that keeps you challenged.
The last factor I mentioned was resilience, which is not easily measured. The reason for this is the path unknown can seem long and tough at times and nothing could have prepared me for the second month of not working. I had expected to do temp work shortly after I quit my job, but due to unforseen circumstances that had me renovating my house, I had no pay whilst spending all of my savings on the renovation. It seemed very bleak when I wasn’t being called for work because I had calculated my finances based up on my circumstances whilst working, so I had saved two months salary and paid down my credit cards, which was not fun and was now holding more debt than whilst I was working, with no job! Thankfully I found a job, but internally things were starting to fall apart. I noticed familiar patterns in my behaviour that tell me things are not good, such as rewatching episodes of a series over and over again, not being able to make decisions and feeling on edge. Thankfully my busy routine with the children tends to shift me quickly out of the abyss and back into the present.
I hope there a few pointers that will help anyone who is struggling in the transition phase of leaving a career for an unknown one. There is always hope, sometimes you just have to switch your perception to a positive outcome. It’s tough and it’s possible.
