Job Quitters' Club

[CroMagna]

Originally Posted by seeker5

Reading on the other thread how your other boss treats you, I really encourage you to do so. Not that having a boss treats you very well is an excuse to stay at a job you don't love - I myself quit a job where my boss treated me very respectfully and really great - I loved my boss, he was really great but I still quit. However, having a boss that treats you bad is definitely a good sign to quit.

Guess what? I did finally quit!! I feel so free. I have very little money and I need to pay bills, but I have never felt happier in my whole entire life. I love everything about my life right now and would never want to go back in time. I feel like staying at that job, especially when I have a history of major depression and panic attacks, would have jeopardized my mental health. That job was not in my field either and was below my potential.

Everyday I get up excited about the day. I enjoy meditating, reading, listening to Zig Ziglar, coming to this forum, responding to job listings that actually sound fun, and setting goals. I feel like my life belongs to me. I will get a little menial job like as a babysitter or at a restaurant to pay bills. That will buy me time so I can get a job I like, because if I just try to get a high paying or impressive sounding job, then guess what? After a month, I'll want to leave.

[Marth]

How about instead of a Job Quitter's club, call it a financial independance club, or a pro-freedom club? Then I'll join

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by CroMagna

Guess what? I did finally quit!! I feel so free. I have very little money and I need to pay bills, but I have never felt happier in my whole entire life.

Congrats for taking that step!!

It's always great to hear when someone throws off the yolk of oppression

Everyday I get up excited about the day. I enjoy meditating, reading, listening to Zig Ziglar, coming to this forum, responding to job listings that actually sound fun, and setting goals. I feel like my life belongs to me. I will get a little menial job like as a babysitter or at a restaurant to pay bills. That will buy me time so I can get a job I like, because if I just try to get a high paying or impressive sounding job, then guess what? After a month, I'll want to leave.

Sounds like a smart approach.

[CroMagna]

Thanks!

[seeker5]

I'm now a full time student! Today, out of curiosity, I went to a career fair put on by the school. Out of all of the companies there, I found a total of 0 companies I was interested in working for. So since none of the companies interested me, I didn't bother inquire about any positions. I'm definitely not going back to working for companies I'm not aligned with at jobs I'm not aligned with are over.

[htgerman]

Great idea for a club! I'm in even though I already quit my job about 3 years ago. Not for the first time actually. I started off working as a translator so I can totally relate to you leaving your job! I still find the process of translating fascinating but as a job it was simply awful and when I noticed that I was dreading Mondays I knew it was time to change.

Actually, for me dreading Mondays is always a clear sign that I never ignore.

So I found a job in a software company and quickly discovered that programming would be for me. I studied and read everything I could and ended up working in big banks in Australia and London (UK). I loved it for about 10 years until the IT industry changed and "outsourcing" became the new way of doing (or rather screwing up) software projects. So, there I was again .. frustrated at work and .. dreading Mondays ..

I was tired of living in London by that time and on a holiday to Granada in the South of Spain I imagined how lovely it would be to live in one of those pretty white houses in the old part of town. Now what?
Why not give it a go? If it didn't work out I could still pack my bags and go elsewhere. But what would I do to earn a living? So I asked myself what I would most love to do if I had no constraints to worry about. At the time I was making a dress while listening to flamenco music. And there it was - the idea for my new career: be my own boss making flamenco dresses. In the back of my mind there was always this dream of having my own business but I never felt it to be feasible for me in IT. But sewing was a different matter. I knew how to sew, had all the basic equipment to get started, would be able to work from home so no need to invest a lot of money to get it off the ground. The more I thought about it the more I realised that there was nothing really stopping me.

To make a long story short (or at least somewhat shorter :-) I decided to take the plunge and move to Spain. A couple of things helped a lot:

- From the years in IT I had some savings
- When I told my boss that I was leaving he suggested that I keep working for the bank remotely from Spain, which I did for the first 8 months. This took the pressure of having to live off the new business straight away.
- I did speak enough Spanish to defend myself. Once there this made it easy to get started and learn to speak well quickly.
- It wasn't the first time I had changed country or career so it wasn't all that scary.

The first skirt I sold to a little flamenco shop. The first big project was making 12 identical outfits for a flamenco school's end of term performance and things just slowly but steadily grew from there. I do no marketing at all - word of mouth keeps me busy these days. Check out my newly created website/blog to see what I'm doing.

Fazit: I haven't regretted it for a second. It isn't always easy. Sometimes I feel that I work harder for less money than ever but seeing dresses I have made on a flamenco stage gives me a satisfaction no job has ever provided and I'll never have to wonder what would have been if I had ..

[Persephone79]

Wow! Amazing how many responses you have had!! So many of us!!

I have not worked for almost 2 yrs following being bullied yet again in a job, reaching the point of not being able to take it anymore and leaving.

This has been the longest i have not worked and though I have had stress, financial worries and the breakdown of my 2 yr relationship in July I have never been more at peace within myself. I am becoming closer to my spiritual path all the time - something I found evaded me when I was in a workplace full of materialistic atheists/cynics. Indeed even my ex with whom I split in July was an atheist while I am deeply spiritual.

He also allowed us to split (against my will) in a very cruel way too, insisting on finalising it by text when I was in another country for a few weeks, where I was helping a friend out and in so doing build my confidence a bit. Even though I wanted us to meet and break up properly face to face when I got back he insisted he wanted a clean break and never wanted to see me or hear from me again. So basically the last time I saw him was when we said goodbye at the airport as a couple. It was a mutual split (I wanted to take the relationship to a higher level - engaged/move in - he didn't) and it could have been amicable but instead he chose to stick the knife in and twist it. I realise now that he's not the person I thought he was. We're not kids either - he's 36, I'm 29.

Well, now, I am in the process of setting up my own business, relating to my spiritual interests and love of aesthete and healing. All I want to do is make enough money to live decently on so I never have to work for anyone else again. That is my main goal, never mind making a million. I am scared and am trying not to feel too crap within myself but I have to try! I really hope the business works out.

I think sometimes the spirtual and heavenly realm pushes for change in our lives to lead us that bit closer to where we should be for our highest good. I think things go awry for us because somebody somewhere is trying to tell us we need to be somewhere else, somewhere better for us, and ultimately better for others as well (The lightworker-darkworker co-operation!)

I think it is time for me once and for all to embrace Spirit within myself and stop being afraid and running away from it.

I hope I find my way and I hope we all do, for all of our sakes xx

[Bitsy]

Originally Posted by htgerman

I started off working as a translator so I can totally relate to you leaving your job! I still find the process of translating fascinating but as a job it was simply awful and when I noticed that I was dreading Mondays I knew it was time to change.

Hello to a fellow discontented translator . If you made belly dancing outfits, I would hire you to do one for me . Your story is encouraging, and you even seem to live your life with the same sort of...mobility that I do. I am sure I will settle somewhere in Europe, but still have a lot to do over here in the U.S. to prepare for my future endeavors. I was also considering moving to Spain at one point, but I don't know anyone there and Spanish is not (yet) one of my languages...and unless I do move there, I don't see it becoming one of my languages either.

Anyway, I am writing to update my situation. My therapy has been going so well that I began to seek work again and reduce the therapy to the usual once a week.

I have started accepting translation work again, but as a freelance translator, which means that, provided the work always comes in, I will be free to decline jobs as I see fit, thus free to travel and take different classes that I need to acquire new skills for what I am planning in the future. Working as a freelance translator will also enable me to smoothly phase out translation all together as I replace it with what I would rather do. So far, I am accepting work from my former employer, where I quit officially this past summer. They pay better than I had thought, so I wouldn't mind if I got the bulk of my income from them. Note that I still haven't exhausted the inheritance money I have been living off of, but soon...

That's my update, but I want to respond to this person too:

Originally Posted by Persephone79

He also allowed us to split (against my will) in a very cruel way too, insisting on finalising it by text when I was in another country for a few weeks, where I was helping a friend out and in so doing build my confidence a bit. Even though I wanted us to meet and break up properly face to face when I got back he insisted he wanted a clean break and never wanted to see me or hear from me again. So basically the last time I saw him was when we said goodbye at the airport as a couple. It was a mutual split (I wanted to take the relationship to a higher level - engaged/move in - he didn't) and it could have been amicable but instead he chose to stick the knife in and twist it.

I always seem to get the most painful scenarios for endings too. And the worst one yet played a big part in the breakdown that led to me quitting my job. (The job had to go, but I had been holding off on change because I had nothing worked out.)

Originally Posted by Persephone79

Well, now, I am in the process of setting up my own business, relating to my spiritual interests and love of aesthete and healing.

What I want to do for my future is along the same lines--spiritual and healing-related. I'm not sure what aesthete is, but I'd be curious what sort of business you will have. I have pretty high aspirations for myself to achieve, though, not just financially, but humanitarianly speaking. I'm not scared, but if I told you what I was aiming for, you might wonder how...If you think you need some uplifting, maybe I could help (with uplifting).

[ellie]

Hello,

Yet another update! Well still really happy. I'm definitely thinking of dropping kinder teaching, but that's ok because other areas of work are going great.

One of the reasons I didn't want to work in design anymore, is basically a lot of the people are money hungry, wankers. The last place (and many before that) I worked for screwed me over money wise and were basically not my type of people. It got to me so much that I could be taken advantage of and that I accepted what I was given, that it really effected me emotionally and mentally. So after that I said to myself, "never again" am I going to get screwed over and I don't want to really work for anyone else or sit next to someone else in an office. It's not worth it to my mental stability. So after that amazingly I was able to connect with a company that didn't screw me over, that actually were decent and gave me a fair hourly rate (allowed me to work from home) that I was happy with and also if I ever went over my hours would tell me to bill them for extra hours! Since then I am getting more and more clients like this, that are really lovely, happy to pay what I stipulate. I have yet to align with anyone since then that has tried to give me a crappy hourly rate and expect things for free. I think it was my ability to make a conscious decision to never be taken advantage of that really helped. Let me tell you, I never imagined I would ever be able to stipulate this hourly rate and well I am really happy with myself. I'm even getting sub contractors to help me out!!! Ha ha!

I also was able to say "no" for the first time to potential work, that I knew I wouldn't align well with. If you have read previous posts of mine, in the past I was too quick to say "yes" and it would get me into lots of trouble with jobs. Well what a feeling when I was able to say "no thanks"! I just knew afterwards that I made the right decision and also learnt I can say "no" and it wont hurt me. I was buzzing for hours after I said "no", that's for sure. It sure was a breakthrough!

So I really do believe you need to be honest with yourself and also make a conscious decision to what you want and what you never, ever want to happen again. Seems to be working a treat for me.

So if you are in a work situation, where you have been bullied, just say "no, this will never happen to me again", or "I will never take a job that offers this amount" etc. Say it out loud, believe, let it make you angry and you never know you might just see a change

[viscapes]

This is a superb thread with some amazing stories.

I'm actually doing some research into this subject and I would be IMMENSELY grateful to anyone who wanted to share their stories, thoughts, hopes and fears with me with a view to helping and supporting others who are in the position you all were when you were considering quitting your job. PM me if you'd like to take part.

Thanks
Paul

[sbdiane]

I wanted to give an update. I quit my job last March to go hike the Pacific Crest Trail. Since I returned from hiking 1500 miles of the trail I have been working on writing a book about my experience. I signed up for a writing class and read part of my book to people in the class, all intimidatingly good writers. Their response was wonderful. They loved my story and the way I told it. They wanted more. They wanted to ask me more questions about my experience. It was like the way I was able to write they forgot all about the writing and only cared about the story. I feel like a writer now.

I read a book about writing and it said that writers have to be careful not to sell too much of their time to others because time is all they had to pursue their art. I feel like hiking is my art and that my ambivalence over the past few months to go back to a corporate job was because I was afraid it would kill my art. I feel like I need to follow a new, non-corporate trail through life so that I can continue to hike and write about my experiences.

I now have a part time job at a pet store. I love birds and the pet store is all about birds. It does not pay well, but it will help.

I also have a chance for another part time job analyzing audio tapes for whale song. I will have to see if I really want to do this, but it would help pay the bills.

I have also so far gotten two clients for my freelance web dev career, the second one from word-of-mouth. They have both been really great small business women. I feel so amazed at these successful small business women. And they have been so helpful to me. They understand someone like me wanting to go into business for myself and have been so helpful with information about doing that. I have decided that my web development will be aimed at very small businesses. That will be my niche. I love helping small businesses and they tend to be run by really cool women. Even the pet store is run by women. I don't care about the money, and this is an attitude that has always worked in my favor. Anytime I do something for fun and for free I get paid more than I ever expected.

I love knowing that my livilhood is not tied to one single organization. I can feel that success is just around the corner. I can't wait until my book is finished, too. It has been a long time of patience to even feel like progress is being made, but I feel it coming right around the corner. Things are happening. I am very happy right now.

[seeker5]

That's great sbdiane! Have you thought of going ahead and writing a book or starting a blog/website about your experiences hiking?

[bbdream8]

I do not have a full time job and now I am doing a personal development site which is going to be my full time income. I don't believe in holding down a full time job and keep going over the motion and wasting my life away. I want to touch others life and be wealthy enough to give and share.

Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger

[sbdiane]

Originally Posted by seeker5

That's great sbdiane! Have you thought of going ahead and writing a book or starting a blog/website about your experiences hiking?

I am writing a book. It is almost finished. I also already have a web site and a blog. Two blogs, actually. Contrary to the myths around here, web sites do not generate huge incomes. At least not if you write about something you truly love and that topic happens to be in a small niche, like local hiking trails. But my web site has generated good web development jobs and lots of local fame for me. I will sell my book there, too.

[C33]

I stopped tearing my soul apart looking for a job , I stopped putting my greatness into small boxes with restricted labels about 4 months ago.

First, I had to get rid of all the limiting beliefs such as scarcity mentality ( there's not enough to get around), fear of lack, fear of financial disaster and general distrust about my ability to handle money well.

Second, I got rid of the people who held such beliefs and projected them on the outcome of my endeavor. Basically, some people just acted like they knew I would fail.

Third, I got rid of all the physical stuff that was holding me back, such as a lot of crap in my family home, mementos that would make me sad because it made me melancholic about my deceased parents, things that were tattered and gathering dust, things that were broken, etc...

Then I fought my fear of lack of money by proving myself I could get some money in.

I started to track money owed to me by banks, people, businesses, etc...( I had given up on getting reimbursed for a fraudulent transaction back in 2007, my bank in Europe charged fees on my dad's account after his death, they reimbursed them back to me), applying for tax rebates ( after a bit of research, I realized that because I had no income in my home country where I own a home, I was eligible for a refund of my residential taxes.): Say Hello to 900 Euros!

I sold furniture, junk, etc, through Ebay, garage sale, internet and made enough money to survive one extra month.

Whenever I started to feel anxiety towards money, I would ask my dad for help, and literally would receive money out of nowhere.I would write down my financial goals,take some action to reach them and, little by little, reaching the amounts I needed( I asked for what I needed, not what I wanted, because I knew I was not at the stage of truly believing I would get what I wanted, yet I truly believed I would get what I needed). I proved the universe that I took money seriously by not being wasteful. I stopped going to restaurants, for example, and stayed home as much as I could.

I started treating the decrepit house I own as an asset, not a liability by renovating it, and in the process saving thousands of euros, adding value to it, and avoiding getting into debt by having someone else doing it for me.

I had wanted to sell my art on calendars and postcards for a long time, but used the excuse I didn't have any material I was proud of to procrastinate on this issue.

In my sick perfectionism, I thought I had to be Van Gogh to even think about selling my art. One day I just took the bull by the horns, finished one drawing that I done research for, but never completed, scanned it( with my home scanner, not waiting to have the perfect tools to take action) and on that same day, the "not perfect and not finished project" was a web store I created, gracing postcards and calendars.It has a Gothic theme, so attracted people wanted to send classy, unusual Halloween greetings. So far my profits have paid for this month's needs, taxes, food, bills. Again, I was shooting for self-sufficiency, because I believe I can achieve it, not abundance. Soon, I will go after more, but right now I am very grateful for what I reaped.

By June 2009, I will be able to pay my bills with this side income.and my house will be renovated and in rental shape, so there goes my second income.

Also, I have started enjoying being alone in my home, having my own voice for counsel and making my own hours. I wake up late every day, but I do work on my creative biz or my home late in the night. I have stopped beating myself on the head for not having the same schedule as the working masses, not waking up early. I feel much better now that I respect my natural rythm.

I have started to cook gourmet meals, rewarding myself with good taste instead of poor quality, empty calories, so I am feeling better in my body, and slowly, gently losing weight and feeling better.

I force myself to walk a minimum of 30mns a day, for health and sanity.

Soon, I will gain more confidence and will ask for more. For now, gratefulness is the transition that suits me, and I am glad.

[seeker5]

Wow - that's a fantastic story C33, thanks so much for sharing it! It's quite inspirational!

How did you go about getting rid of your financial scarcity limiting beliefs?

[Eisho]

Originally Posted by Bitsy

If you have quit your job, please post about it here, and post your progress, tell us what you are doing, intending or working on!

I quit my job (teaching English conversation) three years ago this month. For about 14 months I sat around and didn't really do very much except concentrate on my daughter and continue to make money on the stock exchange. Then boredom hit and a feeling of a lack of contribution. Since then I set myself up as a coach and have enjoyed that experience immensely. I am also working on various web projects. One of my new goals is to be able to travel to different places around the world with my family so I'm looking to set up businesses now that can earn me money from anywhere. My kids are still young so extended periods away are a little difficult for everyone but in a few years I hope to have everything up and running smoothly.

Cheers,

Eisho

[mercuryrising]

Originally Posted by C33

I stopped tearing my soul apart looking for a job , I stopped putting my greatness into small boxes with restricted labels about 4 months ago...

This is just what I needed to hear right now.

My job is causing me to be sick in more ways than one. I've been talking to my spouse for the last month about quitting, which only causes her to stress and worry about where we will get money to pay for everything. So I've continued going to the job, but it feels like a slow suicide.

What I really liked about your story-- and there is a similarity that I've seen with other people's stories on this thread-- is that it doesn't have to become perfection the day you quit. It seems to me to be more like adopting a different lifestyle, imperfect but better than it was before.

Thanks.

[smartile]

I think I've already posted here, but I love the name of this group - Job Quitters Club.

T-Minus 7 days, 4 hrs, 57 minutes and 32 seconds to my last full day of employment in my J-O-B

[smartile]

Today is my last day of employment, yippeee!!

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by smartile

Today is my last day of employment, yippeee!!

Nice!!

[CroMagna]

How long does it take to find a new job? I have been unemployed for 2 months.

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by CroMagna

How long does it take to find a new job? I have been unemployed for 2 months.

Heh, that's like asking how long does it take to find your true love .

I've been unemployed since I quit my job back in June, and I'm loving it. I am though a university student now.

[CroMagna]

You just enrolled in university this fall?

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by CroMagna

You just enrolled in university this fall?

yup, just started this fall.

[CroMagna]

Originally Posted by seeker5

yup, just started this fall.

Congrats! What are you studying?

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by CroMagna

Congrats! What are you studying?

Thanks . I'm studying Business Management.

[ellie]

How's all the job quitters going?

I'm going good, but I feel a change is on the horizon, not sure what change but there's something happening

[sbdiane]

My life has been amazing, if not very lucrative, since I quit my job. I feel more aligned with my true self. I have been doing an assortment of part-time jobs, volunteering and freelancing. I feel the freelancing may actually go someplace. I feel strong and powerful as a freelancer rather than dependent, frightened and soul-crushed as I was working in the cubes. And since my big hike in the wilderness I feel at peace.

That is all to say, the biggest fears most people have do not frighten me anymore. I know I can take care of myself and survive.