Taking the Plunge - Quitting My Part-Time Job
As I’ve mentioned before, I quit my part-time job back in October. FINALLY! It was a long time coming, but ended up being a spur of the moment decision. Now that it’s been 5 months, I couldn’t be more certain that I made the right decision. First of all, NoLo is better than ever. I’ve had so much time to focus on the company and I’ve been able to direct all of my energy into my clients. It just goes to show that the more you put into something, the more you get out of it.
Focusing only on my clients throughout the workday had been something I’d been wanting for a long time. Don’t get me wrong, my clients did not receive less at all, but making that experience happen often took late-night hours, working through exhaustion and spending less time with my family and friends. Now I have normal office hours for NoLo and am able to dedicate the entire day to my clients. I’m also able to spend quality time with the people in my life without having to worry about constantly checking emails or making sure I’ve taken care of everything for the week. My work/ personal life is more balanced that ever!
Money was definitely something that I put a lot of thought into prior to quitting. I constantly worried about whether or not I was financially able to quit. What if bookings stopped? What if I didn’t make as much a month as I had planned? Financially, quitting a job to pursue a dream is always going to be a risk. But at the end of the day, you will never know unless you try. Luckily for me, bookings increased shortly after I started working for myself full-time. Another result that I directly credit to being able to put more effort into myself and my dream. I’m also happier. So much happier. I have no more job stress and am no longer bringing said stress home. I’m the type of person that can’t always leave work at work. So, on days that work wasn’t a great experience (and those were most days) I would definitely come home in an off mood and quite frankly, that wasn’t fair to myself or my husband. Now I’m able to close my office door at the end of the day and relax, which has been wonderful. I’m also able to travel SO much more and traveling is one of those things that just feeds my soul.
Bottom line—If you are thinking about taking the plunge and quitting your part-time job to pursue a dream, I say go for it. I realize that not everyone is in a position that they can take the financial risk, but if you are able to support yourself for a few months, stop second-guessing yourself. It could be one of the best decisions you’ll ever make. It was for me!
