Your J.O.B. sucks!
If you looove your J.O.B. then this article isn't for you...but feel free to read it anyway just incase :-)
I get it!...I was in the exact same situation not too long ago! My alarm clock rang in the morning, I opened my eyes, and the first thing I did was ask myself "what excuse can I come up with today to not come in to the office". After laying in bed for 20 to 30 minutes dreading the day ahead, and mentally sifting through a plethora of excuses I could use to not go in to work, I would come to the conclusion that I didn't have enough PTO days, or there was some mindless meeting that I needed to attend, or my boss needed me to complete some stupid task that he couldn't do, so I would reluctantly get up, shower, and do the dreaded commute to the office, which in and of itself was a routine that I would describe to be about as much fun as getting your teeth pulled out with pliers. After arriving at the office immediately dealing with people constantly talking to me about things I didn't care about, to do a job that offered little to no reward other than just a paycheck I would start my mental timer anxiously counting down the hours until it was time to leave....just to get up and do it again the next day. I was in a bad place mentally but I stayed because the money was good(or so I thought).
As the late Albert Einstein quoted "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting different results.", and boy was I ever experiencing this firsthand! The weekdays would blend together as one long shitty day with only the promise of being able to really enjoy my time on Saturday and Sunday. So basically I was trading 5 shit days a week for 2 good ones... This didn't seem like a good tradeoff for me, nor did it seem like a fair use of my time...so I quit!
Quitting a bad habit is good for you
Breaking a bad habit is tough! Whether it's having a sweet tooth or smoking, quitting can seem like an insurmountable obstacle for some. So what does this have to do with quitting a job you hate? Well, the problem alot of us don't realize is that going to a toxic workplace day in and day out is a habit...not a necessity. Most people are addicted to the thought of having to trade their time for money, so they put up with people they don't like, doing a thing they hate, at a place that brings them no joy, for years out of their life in order to maintain a lifestyle that probably isn't all that gratifying. Sure, the bills need to get paid and your lifestyle has its price, and "we gotta eat" right? But at what cost?
According to studies Individuals who work in toxic work environments (especially over a long period of time) begin to see problems with their own personal health. This can include physical symptoms such as not being able to sleep, gaining weight, and having increased medical problems amongst other things. This was definitely the case for me. I was at a point where I couldn't sleep well at night, I had no motivation to do the things that I was really passionate about on my days off, and I was in and out of the hospital with severe panic attacks almost on a weekly basis. It was definitely time for a change...
You're better than this
Understanding that everyones situation is different...the truth is, no one is holding a gun to your head making you go to a toxic workplace (atleast, I hope thats not the case for any of you). And yes, I do understand that it's exponentially more difficult to uproot and start over when you have serious obligations such as a family that counts on you to bring home some income, but at one point you chose to apply to this place, interview, and accept an offer. So why do you want out now?
For me, the problem wasn't the office or the environment itself. I actually loved going in to work when I first started that particular position and worked with some really cool people that I still keep in contact with to this day. For me the problem was the lack of growth. Not growth in title or position in regards to climbing the corporate ladder, but growth as a person. As the days turned into months and the months into years, I realized that working at this place wasn't really leading toward a path that I wanted to go down in life. I started noticing the tired look on peoples faces who had been there for years, I started to notice the stories of these senior employees who had been doing the exact same job for years and how they had lost all of their ambitions to look for something better because this job is all they were used to, literally becoming drones for the company. Most importantly I started to notice that this was not the path I wanted to go down and that I was way to ambitious to work a dead-end job for 15-20 years only to end up full of regret from not taking any of the risks I could've taken in my younger years.
The million dollar question...
If I quit my job, how will I make a living!? That's the million dollar question EVERY person who has quit their 9-5 has asked themselves(including me!). It's a valid question!... How in the hell are you supposed to pay for food, shelter, entertainment, phone, car, gas, etc. without a J.O.B.! Well, the answer is probably not as complicated as you think. The problem is that initially people in this situation try to solve it by applying the same tactics that got them here in the first place. Find a "better" job, doing the exact same thing you were doing at the job you just quit. THAT'S WHAT YOU'LL DO! You're gonna troll all the job boards and apply to all the jobs you see that have the same title or qualification requirements as your last job. That's exactly why you quit right? To end up right back where you started...right? The answer to that should be a resounding NO!
Chances are you've seen this situation in your life too but, I've seen many of my friends and family members quit a shit job, to get a "better" job, and life is all peaches and cream for them at first...until they start to hate that job, and again they start to look for a new job...and on and on. It's a vicious cycle that leads nowhere also known as the "rat race". A never ending race to get to a finish line that doesn't exist. I know...because that was my initial "knee jerk" reaction to the newfound problem I had created for myself. I spent the first days of my journey as an entrepreneur trolling the job boards for jobs that were similar in pay and description as my last job. I would interview at these companies hoping that the environment or the office culture was better than the last. I was looking to replace what I had quit with the exact same thing. Why? Well, because I was scared. Scared to go into the unknown.
Making money is easy
It's true, If you really think about it...there are trillions and trillions of dollars circulating the planet every day, changing hands, changing accounts, some people receiving it, some people spending it, it's mind boggling if you really think about it! The problem is not making money, the money is there...the REAL problem that keeps people tied to a job they hate is fear. The construct that has been taught to them that requires them to live a life on family expectations or societal rules. The nonexistent rules that they have applied to themselves that say that they need to get a job after college, get married, have kids, work that job until they retire and THEN they get to enjoy their life. The"prison with invisible walls" as I like to call it.
For me, these so called rules never made sense. Not when there is a 17 year old in Australia who makes millions of dollars in his pajamas with an e-commerce store, or a woman in her mid 20s who makes $5K a month blogging from a cafe in Paris, or an influencer on Instagram / YouTube making a living to promoting products, or a thirty-something year old in New York City who brings in $10,000 per month from an ebook he wrote ;-) So you see...for me, making money isn't the hard part...for me the hardest part is changing your belief system to know that there are better ways of doing it than working a job you hate.
So, now what?
In 2021, if you have a computer and the internet, you have money! So do I recommend you quit a job you hate today??? If you are a bachelor(ete) who only has him/herself to worry about....YES! I won't lie to you, you'll have to get lean for a while until you figure it out, but for someone who doesn't have anybody depending on them for food on the table, it's just a matter of enduring the lifestyle change until it starts to make sense and you start to figure out how to make a living doing what you love to do.
If you're a family man or woman, then it's a little trickier but not impossible to leave the dreaded job behind and get paid for doing what you love to do or at the very least something you don't hate. You'll have to work twice as hard since more than likely you'll have to start this process as a "side-hustle" meaning you'll have to work your regular 9-5 to pay the bills and then 5-9 to work on your own venture. There will be sleepless nights, and long days, but in the end if it's truly something you believe in, then it's definitely worth the pain.
In closing
Moving forward isn't about quitting a job that sucks the life out of you only to land at a similar job that puts you right back at the same position. Moving forward is about taking life by the horns and living it to the fullest on YOUR terms. In my opinion, gone are the days of working a single job for the majority of your adult life so that you can enjoy your retirement. Today's generation knows that with a computer, the internet, and some ambition...anything is possible.
Below are some of the books that have helped me in my journey as a successful freelance developer, living life on my terms no longer working a job I hate! My wish is that you find some value in them as I did.
The Six-Figure Freelancer: Your Roadmap to Success in the Gig Economy
The Freelancer's Bible: Everything You Need to Know to Have the Career of Your Dreams―On Your Terms
The 1-Page Marketing Plan: Get New Customers, Make More Money, And Stand out From The Crowd
I hope you found this article interesting and informative.
Until next time my friends!
-David
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