My first job outside of college - ad sales. Blech.
I've resigned from many jobs, most because I moved and intended on getting another one. But the last resignation held much more meaning; I planned on making the leap from day job to dream job.
I even wrote a really heart-felt resignation letter explaining how I always wanted to be a full-time writer and how it was now or never. I'm pretty sure the head boss made fun of it, but whatever. Who's living on the beach and not pushing paper?
If you're thinking about making the leap too, here are some things to keep in mind. My four pieces of advice before spreading your wings:
Analyze your finances.
Before I made the big decision I scrutinized my finances, looked over my bank account about a thousand times, calculated and figured out how long my money would carry me in the event that I didn't get any jobs. It came out to about three months.
After reading countless warnings to have at least six months saved up, I was a bit hesitant. But then I thought, I can do it in three.
And I only had to dip into savings a little bit. So it's really up to you and your situation. Maybe you have to account for children and daycare, a mortgage and a car payment.
Take a good, long look at how much money goes out and how long your current savings will last you. Then analyze whether or not you think you'll be able to drum up enough work to sustain you in x amount of months.
Talk to your partner.
If you're living with someone else it's important to talk to him/her about your plans. After all, your decision will affect your partner as well.
Ask for his advice, her opinion. Discuss possible problems and solutions. Answer any questions your partner may have.
Most importantly, try not to get upset if they're not on board 100%, especially at first. This is a huge decision and change isn't easy. Give her/him a few days to think about it and then discuss again if you need to. Just remember, at some point the talking has to stop and action must be taken.
Have a plan.
I can't say map out every scenario and have three solutions to every problem just in case, because I didn't have much of a plan, but I had an idea of where I was going.
I knew I had x amount of time to accomplish what I needed to accomplish and a few ideas on how to do it.
Moving to the Philippines was also part of the plan.
Maybe scaling back on expenditures needs to be in your plan or writing up a weekly to-do list to keep you on track.
Whatever helps you get to where you need to be is a plan. The more specific, the better!
Don't leave on a bad note.
So let's say you've decided to make the leap and you've handed in your resignation letter. Don't let it be your ticket to slacking off - you never know if the people/company you work for will show up in your life again. Best not to burn bridges.
Treat your last days like any other working day and leave on a positive note. Don't give people any fuel to burn you with later.
Are you thinking about quitting your day job? What's one thing that's holding you back? Have you already taken the leap and have your own advice to dish?
I even wrote a really heart-felt resignation letter explaining how I always wanted to be a full-time writer and how it was now or never. I'm pretty sure the head boss made fun of it, but whatever. Who's living on the beach and not pushing paper?
If you're thinking about making the leap too, here are some things to keep in mind. My four pieces of advice before spreading your wings:
Analyze your finances.
Before I made the big decision I scrutinized my finances, looked over my bank account about a thousand times, calculated and figured out how long my money would carry me in the event that I didn't get any jobs. It came out to about three months.
After reading countless warnings to have at least six months saved up, I was a bit hesitant. But then I thought, I can do it in three.
And I only had to dip into savings a little bit. So it's really up to you and your situation. Maybe you have to account for children and daycare, a mortgage and a car payment.
Take a good, long look at how much money goes out and how long your current savings will last you. Then analyze whether or not you think you'll be able to drum up enough work to sustain you in x amount of months.
Talk to your partner.
If you're living with someone else it's important to talk to him/her about your plans. After all, your decision will affect your partner as well.
Ask for his advice, her opinion. Discuss possible problems and solutions. Answer any questions your partner may have.
Most importantly, try not to get upset if they're not on board 100%, especially at first. This is a huge decision and change isn't easy. Give her/him a few days to think about it and then discuss again if you need to. Just remember, at some point the talking has to stop and action must be taken.
Have a plan.
I can't say map out every scenario and have three solutions to every problem just in case, because I didn't have much of a plan, but I had an idea of where I was going.
I knew I had x amount of time to accomplish what I needed to accomplish and a few ideas on how to do it.
Moving to the Philippines was also part of the plan.
Maybe scaling back on expenditures needs to be in your plan or writing up a weekly to-do list to keep you on track.
Whatever helps you get to where you need to be is a plan. The more specific, the better!
Don't leave on a bad note.
So let's say you've decided to make the leap and you've handed in your resignation letter. Don't let it be your ticket to slacking off - you never know if the people/company you work for will show up in your life again. Best not to burn bridges.
Treat your last days like any other working day and leave on a positive note. Don't give people any fuel to burn you with later.
Are you thinking about quitting your day job? What's one thing that's holding you back? Have you already taken the leap and have your own advice to dish?
