Yesterday morning, I quit my job. I quite my first, cushy, 9-5, salary w/benefits job.
I graduated in December 2010 and had a hell of a time finding work. I ended up taking a contract job at an advertisement agency in downtown Minneapolis after 2 months of exchanging emails with them. The pay was terrible. I lived for 9 months on it, at the poverty line, often working 50 - 60 hour work weeks - and I learned a lot.
I also made some amazing friendships along the way, but that’s another post entirely.
After I had worn myself thin at that gig, I looked for something soft, well-paying, and safe. I ended up at a large 1,500 employee, international company in the suburbs. The pay was generous, the benefits very good, and the workload, well, pathetic in comparison. But I hated it.
Yesterday, I sat my manager down, told him this place can't fulfill my calling, took five of my remaining 10 work days as Paid-Time-Off, and tendered my resignation.
*Update - HR wouldn’t give me the PTO days, so at the end of the day, I called it quits. My manager called me weird.
The best part though, my favorite moment, was when he asked where I was going.
"Who's steeling ya away from us?," he asked.
"Nobody," is what I came back with, along with a sideways glance and a wry smile. Then I launched into my big plans to become a writer, start my own business, and do meaningful work. This is the moment I'd been planning for. The voice screaming inside me for the past several weeks that I could no longer cover up finally spoke out, and I’ve never been more confident.
It was awesome.
Is it worth the risk to leave a steady, easy, lucrative career in email marketing to struggle, push, and fight, for a career as a writer and producer with no previous credentials or industry experience?
Absolutely.
Am I sure to collect scars and suffer plenty of failure?
Yes. But damnit I will be alive every day from now on. All I can do is keep pushing forward with this. The chips are down, I’ve shown my hand.
Who can say for sure where I’ll end up at the end of the year. I have goals set for myself, and this journal is here to keep me on track.
All I can do is keep taking risks and practice a wry smile for the ones that work out.
I know I’m not alone out here. I know that others feel the same way about their jobs, yet day in and day out you show up, keep your head down, and survive for the weekend. My question to you is: What are you waiting for?
