A few months ago, I made the major decision to leave my corporate job. This was not a decision that I took lightly. I debated the different options that I had for months and it took a lot of fear, anxiety, and doubt before deciding to take the leap. I had a couple prospects and ideas as to where I would end up on the other side, and while I was nowhere close, the decision to leave was the best decision I have made.
I started my corporate job five years earlier after packing up my car and moving across the country to start a new life on my own. It was exactly what I needed for many years. I learned and grew significantly as a leader, professional, and person. It was not until the last year of working there that I started feeling that I needed to make a change.
I noticed a pretty clear shift about nine months before my last day. Nothing had really changed except that everything was different. The joy and satisfaction that I once found every day in my job were no longer there. I kept searching and trying different things but the gnawing feeling of knowing it was time to do something different just kept getting louder.
This was the sign that I needed to look at myself to see what had changed. I wrote out the things that motivated me most in life: creativity, words, strategizing a better future, encouraging and teaching others how to follow their passions and achieve their goals, transformation, learning and growth. I compared that to what I was being motivated to do in my job: teach my team how to hit company specified metrics, train financial conversations and concepts, and help customers who were upset or were facing complex situations.
My epiphany was that the motivations of my job did not match my heart any longer. There were many factors that made this the truth and the realization made my decision much easier. I knew that I reached a point where I could no longer fulfill the needs that I had with my corporate job. Even after I put these pieces together, I didn’t make a move right away. Leaving seemed too dramatic and I didn’t have a plan. It didn’t seem like a smart move so I stayed put.
Have you ever tried to ignore an epiphany? Spoiler alert if you haven’t: it’s not a pretty process. It took many tears, breakdowns, and sleepless nights before I finally took action and turned in my notice. And the rest is history!
Life did not get easier right away but here is what I held on to: I knew I could trust myself. My life has tested me in many ways and I have always been able to get through it. I knew that no matter what happened, I could reply on myself and my abilities. I make sure that I remind myself of this trust every day. I have never looked back after leaving my corporate job.