Are you planning to quit your job?

July 16, 2014 by Usiere Uko 0 Comments

   

 

Author of   ‘Practical Steps to Financial Freedom and Independence’, USIERE UKO, writes about factors to consider before quitting your job

Every job satisfaction surveys I have come across – ranging from Wellness Council of America, Business Week and a host of others – shows that majority of employees are unhappy with their jobs. One eye opening question in the survey is:

I look forward to going to work on Monday morning (Yes/No)

Whether the crux of the matter is poor attitude on the part of the employee, a hostile work environment, a desire for bigger challenges, a quest to fulfill your entrepreneurial dreams or a simple case of career misfit, we want to quit our jobs at one point or the other. The focus of this article is those who want to quit paid employment.

The reality is that everything that has a beginning has an end, including your job. You can exit your job in one of several ways – get fired, downsised, early retirement, resignation, voluntary retirement, mandatory retirement, incapacitation, death etc. The best way to bid your job goodbye is to leave on your own terms, when you are good and ready to face the outside world.

As stated in earlier articles, it is the job of every employee to achieve financial independence; this gives you the power to choose. It gives you the option to choose to do what you love rather than work to sustain your standard of living (earning to spend). You can choose to take an early retirement and give your full time to your goals and dreams; if that is the way you want to go.

We are not all cut out to be entrepreneurs. Being an entrepreneur requires more skills, discipline and courage than remaining in paid employment. Entrepreneurship is not an escape route for mediocre performers in the corporate world. It is for non-conformists who are willing to take the risk of charting new territory and take their destiny into their hands rather than depend on their employers for financial security.

The decision to quit your job is not an easy one to make. You have to put your house in order (including getting your spouse on the same page) and then overcome the twin forces of fear and greed. I will attempt to take them one by one.

Putting your house in order

The first step towards putting your house in order is having a clear goal of what you want to achieve. Design your life the way you want it after quitting your job. Set clear financial goals. How much do you want to earn the first year after quitting your job? Where will this income come from? What is your medium and long term income goals? What standard of living do you want to maintain upon exit? What standard of living do you want to maintain in the medium and long term?

One key advantage of being on your own is that you can choose what you want to do with your life, how and when. Attaining financial independence gives you this option to choose, as you are not under pressure to jump on the first thing that will bring money to pay your bills. You can maintain your lifestyle with your passive income.

The first step is to decide what you want to be doing, and start doing it in your spare time. The ideal situation is to have it running well before you make the leap. This is called the ‘Tarzan formula’. Although Tarzan leaps from tree to tree, if you observe carefully, he does not let go of one rope until he grabs the other. He transitions smoothly. Taking a blind leap of faith can work but it is not advisable. The failure rate is very high. You need to test your weapons before you go to war. If you wait until actual war breaks out before you test your weapons, some weapon failure may be fatal. Start doing it first. Fail, learn from it and keep going until you get it.

Even when you have achieved financial independence, you do not want a situation whereby your business drains your reserves and threatens your capital base. Get it to the point whereby you have broken even at least, so that with more time on your hands, you can move it into the growth phase.

What is your perfect day at work?

If you don’t know what to do with your life after paid employment, you are obviously not ready to quit your job. Simply stay put where you are and make a difference in your current job, or get another job that fits your interests.

You may be in a situation whereby you really want to be on your own but are not sure where your interest lies, the next exercise may help.

After having decided what you want to do (or are still searching) the next step is to design your work day the way you want it. Pretend you are a child again, with a mountain of Lego blocks to build your perfect day.

If you had your way, what is your perfect day at work?

What city are you in? Which part of town?

What clothes are you wearing? (pyjamas, shorts and t-shirt, jeans, coveralls, suit and tie, casual or corporate?)

What are your working hours? What time do you leave for work?

What does your office look like?

Where is your office? How far is it from your house? What is the commute time? Are you working from home (which means it takes about 30 seconds to get from your bedroom to your office?)

Are you working alone or with a Team? Are your team members co-located with you or do you communicate via the internet (e.g. Skype etc)?

Describe your perfect day at work. What are you doing? Confess your secret desires to yourself.

Design your work life in full detail, just the way you want it. Do not bother about how at this point, just put down what you really want. Gain clarity first. If you really make up your mind that this is what you really want, finding out the how is not difficult – if you commit to learning and growing, start moving and keep moving. Where there is will, there is a way. The main problem arises when you have no idea where you are going. Then you will dissipate energy going round in circles. That is what most people do.

When you are on your own, you no longer report to anybody. You have the power to design your day just the way you want it. Don’t just stumble into it. Go about life intentionally. Put in on paper now at the preparation stage and have a clear picture in your mind.

To be continued