6 Reasons Why I Left Corporate America Behind and Will Never Look Back
For the last 14 months I was hesitant to share my life update out of fear of failure, scrutiny and getting questions that I didn’t really have the answers to. But the time has come to be transparent with everyone. On September 5th, 2019 I resigned from my corporate job to take the most rewarding risk of them all. I bet on myself and I have decided to take the leap to pursue travel blogging full time. Here are six reasons why I left the corporate world behind.:
1. The Perks Started to Feel Like Shackles:
The six figure salary, the 401K, the health insurance, etc. were all goals of mine and pretty much everyone else. Society has done a stellar job at convincing us that these are the things we need to be happy. I was able to afford travel six times per year, a brand new Mercedes, go out whenever I wanted, have a roof over my head and still have wiggle room for emergencies. This is what we were taught ‘freedom’ looked like. So for years I made it my business to climb corporate ladders in search of this freedom and overall happiness. What I didn’t realize was the same perks that I wanted so badly, were the exact same things that made me forget about my dreams. Then it hit me. These corporations will compensate us with all of life’s comforts in exchange to forget about our passions and overall purpose in life. I came to a harsh realization that I was held hostage to the comforts of corporate America.
2. I No Longer Wanted Someone Else To Own My Time:
When you think about it, you spend one third of your life at your job. It would only make sense to spend this much time doing something you love and makes you happy. Spending 8 hours per day at a computer screen while being told what you’re supposed to do, when, and for how long becomes mundane. I realized that I wanted to own my time and make my own schedule. If I want to take a day off, I didn’t want to have to request approval. If I wanted to move a meeting, I could do so on my own accord. If I had a doctors appointment, I didn’t want to have to tell anyone first. All of this is simply not possible when you work for someone else.
3. I Was No Longer Fulfilled:
For a long time I enjoyed my corporate job. The hours were decent (9am-5pm), the pay was great, the benefits were greater and my life was easy and comfortable. I was one of the few (privileged) people who never really had money problems. I felt like I was making a difference with every finance project I worked on. But as travel was introduced to my life, I noticed that my love for my job was dwindling. The excitement on conference calls faded, the networking events felt like chores and I would be counting the days until my next trip to create content and interact with locals. The changes I was making were pretty much only beneficial to millionaires and multi billion dollar corporations as opposed to making more impactful changes to regular people like me.
4. I Became Lazy:
I would sneak and work on my blog when I should have been working. I would be more excited to publish a new blog than I would be to complete a project at work. And most importantly, I became one of those people who woke up every day and dreaded coming to work. This was when I knew it was time to make a change. I went from the employee who didn’t mind staying late to the employee who would leave at 5pm SHARP.
5. This Isn’t The First Time This Happened:
It’s not very common for people to share their losses but in this moment of transparency, I was laid off three times before. In the years 2011, 2013 and 2014 and each time it happened I started to think ‘man I cant catch a break!’. I put in so many hours, barely took off, attended events, took on extra tasks, etc. All to one day be told I no longer have a job due to some sort of ‘budget cuts’. In hindsight, what I should have realized was those were my signals from the universe to focus on my dreams sooner.
6. I Got The Push I Needed:
I had always planned to leave my corporate job at some point (yes I have been saving for this day). But I always let fear and comfort get in the way and kept pushing it back. I was waiting for some great moment in time when I would wake up and be “ready” Ha, what a laugh. Now you know what they say, if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans. I didn’t want to accept the reality that I wasn’t going to leave on my own unless I was pushed. So in February 2019 I found out my entire department was being relocated to Delaware. The catch was, my firm was not sponsoring any relocations. Long story short, if I wanted to keep my job, I would have to relocate to Delaware on my own dollar. Because travel is such a big part of my life, Delaware is not a place where I can easily travel out of. So on top of being away from friends and family and the risk of relocating with the possibility of being laid off within another year (lots of big companies relocate jobs then eliminate them in 1-2 years), this was when I knew I was being pushed. It was a now or never moment. So on September 5th 2019 I walked away from all that I knew and took the leap forward and haven’t looked back since.
So…Now What?:
When I walked out of my office for the last time, I didn’t feel the way I did when I was laid off in the past. Previously I felt defeated. This time I felt like I won. I walked out of there knowing that a new beginning was ahead. A new beginning where I called the shots and not someone else. I didn’t exactly know how I was going to do it, but I knew that I would figure it out. Currently my income is from sponsored posts on social media as well as writing for travel publications, creating trip itineraries for clients and other photography related gigs. Although I don’t make the same amount of money I once did (yet), this is the happiest and most fulfilled I have ever felt.
To be Clear, I am NOT telling everyone to quit their jobs! Entrepreneurship is 100% not for everyone. If you are fulfilled at your job, enjoy your days, are paid what you’re worth and see your value then please stay as long as you can. But for those who felt like me, come up with a solid plan (this can take time) that will allow you to live your dreams and find your calling. If theres one major lesson I can take from this journey, it’s that when you’ve found your calling, the universe will make a way for you.