Well, in Part 1 of this post, I filled you in on a bit of my backstory. I shared how I felt I got a little swept up in the motion of things during my college years and ended up in a career I never envisioned for myself. And how, ultimately, remaining in that unfulfilling career led to much misery and unrest on my part.
That brings us to today’s post, Part 2 of How to Walk Away from a Career…in Search of Your True Calling.
Do What You Love, Love What You Do
So, how do you go from a miserable state in a career to finding something you love that can also pay the bills? In short, you make a plan.
After a couple years of teaching I knew I wasn’t happy and that it wasn’t going to change with time. But I didn’t just walk in one day with my resignation in hand. My husband and I took the time to devise a plan of action for the next phase of our life.
We did some major soul searching, dreaming, and goal setting. We assessed all possible worst-case scenarios, developed a list of pros and cons, and came up with a plan (and a back-up plan) that included preparing financially for the both of us to walk away from teaching without any other option in place at the time.
In typing this out, I realize it sounds fairly simple, but I’ll be real with you—It. Was. Stressful. We had to keep our “eye on the prize” so to speak and encourage one another that we were doing the best thing for both of us. And we didn’t have a whole lot of support outside of one another. To most of our family, we appeared to be crazy. Walking away from good paying jobs with benefits to chase faraway dreams looked pretty irresponsible to most outsiders.
But we pushed on; we stuck to our plan, shifted our priorities and are doing just fine. In fact, given that our worst case scenarios included moving back in with my parents and/or living out of a cardboard box, I’d say we are doing more than just fine. And we are happy. Oh so happy.
I don’t know what the future holds, but I sure am excited to see what it brings.
How to Walk Away from a Career in Search of Your True Calling
I’m not writing this post to encourage you all to go out and quit your day jobs. But I am writing to help give some of you the courage you need to leave a career you are absolutely miserable in. I speak from experience, and I couldn’t imagine what my life would be like today if I were still in that misery. It wouldn’t be pretty, that’s for sure.
So, here are some things to seriously consider if you are weighing your options and career choices.
- Do Some Soul Searching: Before you just quit your job because you are unhappy, take some time to figure out what you are looking for. Where do you envision yourself in 5-10 years? Dream big…if you could do anything at all for a career, what would it be? Then set some goals…how can you achieve those dreams realistically? What is your purpose in life, where do you feel called?
- Discuss the Pros & Cons: Let’s get real for a moment. This will be a huge life change, and it really shouldn’t be taken lightly. Sit down with your spouse or loved ones and work through it together. Come up with a list of pros and cons for leaving your career and for staying in it. Evaluate these lists side by side. Brainstorm some worst-case scenarios and decide if you could handle them if they came to fruition. Is the risk worth the reward?
- Create a Plan: I cannot emphasize enough the importance of communicating with your spouse before making a life choice such as this. You both need to be on the same page and have clear expectations going into something as upheaving as a career change. I would recommend coming up with a 5-year plan together, where do you see yourselves in the future and how do you intend to get there?
- Build Up Savings & Pay Down Debt: There is freedom in financial stability. Before my husband and I walked away from our careers we worked our butts off to be debt free and have an emergency savings account in place. It was in this freedom that we were able quit our jobs without having new jobs in place right away. We weighed the options and decided it was worth teaching a few more years before quitting in order to have the financial stability to walk away when we did.
- Shift Priorities: I’ve shared more about shifting priorities in other posts (“Learning to Live Simply” and “Choosing Stillness“), and when you are making a big life change, those priorities are going to shift. If you aren’t mentally prepared for that change it can be a rough transition. So, before you make the change, change your mindset. Determine what is important to you in life. Be prepared to stand up for your beliefs and priorities when those around you don’t understand what you are doing. Learn to find contentment in any circumstance, realizing that you will be making sacrifices to live a happier life in search of your true calling.
Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:11-13 (NLT)
Only you can decide if what I’m sharing with you today is speaking directly to your heart or not. You know who you are and what your circumstances are; you can relate to what I’ve shared over the last two posts and you are looking for the courage to make a move. You have the yearning to find your true calling in a different career. I’ve been there, I took the leap, and I’m simply sharing my story and what worked for me with you.
As for what is next for me and Wildland Man…I’m not sure. But I have faith and I trust in the Lord and what He is doing in our lives. So for now, I’m content with continuing my journey to just Be Still & Know…
