So You Want to Quit Your Job
It takes courage, planning and savings (or so I’m told)
Confession alert: I’ve never had the courage to quit a job without having something else already lined up. In fact, the three times I quit, I had something else already on the go. And even then I tried to make sure the old job would still be there if/when I needed it.
But that doesn’t mean I didn’t spend a good chunk of time dreaming about quitting my last job. I was transported to this time of my life quite recently when I reconnected with an old friend. Lesley works for the United Nations and we very rarely find ourselves in the same time zone let alone the same city. She’s the type of friend who you can see once every three years and it’s like no time as passed. We still easily gravitate to real talk about real concerns: are you happy with your life right now?
I last visited Lesley three years ago when she was living in New York. At that time I was deeply unhappy with a lot in my life, but trying to disguise it with layers of toxic positivity. I was dealing with deep grief for the first time, following the unexpected drowning death of someone I was dating. And I was avoiding these feelings by burying myself in work.
Two weeks after this visit I had a complete breakdown at my desk and took two months off to work on my mental health. In that time I worked through my grief. But this process also unveiled a truth I would only ever touch on but not address full-on: I hated my job.
I hated what my day-to-day responsibilities had become. I managed calendars and “oversaw” projects. Yes, I was rewarded with a management-level salary, but the creativity that fuelled my career for so many years was non-existent. I was a vehicle for other people’s ideas.
I tried looking for other work in the company, but anything comparable was more of the same. I had succeeded up to a level I wasn’t comfortable in, but I didn’t know how to get out.
I was wrestling with all of these ideas in the winter of 2020 (that January I told myself this is the “clear vision year”, playing off the idea of 20/20 vision). When the pandemic threw the world into uncertainty three months into the year, my exit strategy was put on hold. I tried as hard as I could to hold on to a job I wanted to leave during the most challenging time to work.
And yet I still didn’t have the courage to quit.
The decision was made for me when the company restructured less than a year into the pandemic.
It was the best thing to ever happen to me.
As long as I stayed in that job, I could only see a future that was a direct extension from what I was doing. Any alternative was more of the same. But in getting laid off, well, that was a clean break that forced me to see my skills in other ways.
My biggest fear holding my back was (and always is) money. There’s a seductive security in getting a steady pay cheque. I made many concessions to justify staying in a job I had outgrown just for the pay and benefits.
Once those things were taken away I had to address that fear head-on. Here are three things I relied on to get me through a period where my future was wide-open and overwhelming. If I knew this three years ago, I would have made this move myself so much earlier.
- Get All of Your Finances in Order
Most articles on financial planning and literacy suggest having three to six months living expenses for emergencies. The idea being if you find yourself unable to work, you have some money to carry you for however long you expect to be unemployed. The reality is, I never knew if I needed three months, six months or a year. I had no idea what I wanted to do next. How was I supposed to know when it would start paying again?
Whatever your financial situation is right now, book time with a financial planner. You don’t even need to pay for one. Your bank will have someone you can talk to. They’ll suggest how to structure your finances and prioritize your money based on whatever your needs.
This was the first thing I did when I got laid off. Within a week I had met with a financial planner. We took a look at what I had in my savings and what income I had coming in. I left with a plan for how to manage both my immediate financial needs as well as long-term retirement planning. With that stress out of the way I finally had the clarity to see what else I could do.
2. Complete Your Big-Money Moves Before You Quit
This bit of advice I stumbled upon quite by accident. Real estate has been my passive income source for a few years and I’m always checking in on when I can make my next move. I had just refinanced the mortgage on the condo I live in. The new terms brought the monthly carrying costs low enough where I can rent it out at market price right now. Whenever you refinance, you do need to take some money out of your equity, which I was going to pay towards the principle of my other mortgage (the one on my actual rental property).
The new mortgage terms were finalized just before I lost my job. So instead of using these new funds to pay down my other mortgage, this money became the foundation for my emergency money. For years I struggled to save this amount. Now I don’t recommend doing this in lieu of building up savings. In fact now that I’m bringing in an income again, my primary focus is back on paying down my mortgage as quickly as possible. But, this is a temporary job loss while you figure out next steps.
You’ll get better terms on any loan when you’re gainfully employed by a reliable employer. So time your big money moves for when your job creates these favourable conditions. I’m now self-employed. It will take three to five years to show sustainable income through my consulting work, which means I’m not making a big real estate move during that time.
3. Hire a Career Coach.
I was fortunate enough to have this service included in my severance package. But if you plan on quitting, factor in this service to your overall budget. Or, better still, seek out this service before you quit so you can execute your plan sooner than expected.
It took months of mental unpacking, but over time I rediscovered the skills I value, not the skills my last employer prioritized. I mapped out what I want this phase of my career to look like. With her guidance we created marketing materials — a resume, one-pagers for my consulting work, my LinkedIn profile. She even gave notes on my website. All with the goal of attracting clients, employers, work. And all of it is on my terms.
I’m now the proud owner of a consulting company pursuing clients, ideas and projects I’m truly exited about. I’m the vehicle for my own ideas and it’s everything I hoped it would be.
So when I reunited with my globe-trotting friend for our typical happiness check-in, I shared all of the progress I made this summer and even some exciting prospects for the fall.
“This is amazing,” Lesley said. “You were so miserable the last time I saw you. And you had been unhappy for a while. I’m so happy for you!”
I still don’t know what it’s like to rage-quit a job that no longer serves you. It’s scary to leave a steady pay cheque. But it’s even scarier to hold on to something that’s sinking your happiness.
This article is for entertainment purposes only and should not be used as financial advice
