5 Reasons To Quit That Dream Job That Became A Nightmare
By: Mark Craven
Tags: Life, Life Lessons, Self Improvement, Leadership, Self Help

1. IT’S A NIGHTMARE!

Sometimes we really need things spelt out for us. We kind of do this dance in our heads thinking that it isn’t as bad as we think it is and we should be thankful for what we have. Don’t get me wrong, we MUST practise gratitude but we also MUST practice being honest with ourselves.

The fact is you likely wouldn’t be reading this if you loved your job. You wouldn’t have clicked the title above if you were truly content and fulfilled within the position you’re currently in. The moment we can find honesty within ourselves and admit things to ourselves that we wholeheartedly know to be true is the moment we really begin living and living on our own terms.

So, reason number 1 to leave that shitty job… it’s shitty.

2. You’re Standing In Someone Else’s Opportunity

I know it tends to be hard to think about other people when we’re so caught up in our own mental messes caused by the very things we’re doing to ourselves BUT it remains to be true that we are actually in a good position, however, the position is for someone else.

When I was working as a Student Success Coach at a local community college, I had a strong realization one morning when I was ironing my khakis:

I’m voluntarily taking myself to slaughter.

It hit me very hard at that moment that there wasn’t anyone holding a gun to my head and forcing me to go to this job that I hated. I was doing it to myself. Within a few weeks of that epiphany, I quit the job and was on my way from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to live in my dream city of Los Angeles, California.

If you’ve ever read The Alchemist there’s a quote that says, “…when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” And that is exactly what happens when we act regardless of our fear. Things will fall into place that you never realized even had to fall into place.

A short time after leaving that job someone else filled the position and it worked as a springboard for him to move into an executive director role within the school.

When you get out of your way, you will also get out of someone else’s way.

3. There Is Something So Much Bigger And Better Waiting For You

You’re always told that the grass isn’t greener on the other side. But I’m here to tell you that when the grass you’re currently standing on is shit-brown, then the grass is definitely greener on the other side.

If you’re dreading coming to work tomorrow and you haven’t even finished today’s workday then that’s when you have to make a decision. The decision to stay and bring on self-inflicted misery or the decision to leave and step into that great void of unknown.

There will always be fear associated with the latter decision but at the same time, there will be this needle-point size of peace in your heart that lets you know you’re making the right move. There is something better waiting for you and that something is a you that’s brave and in control of your own life. Along with that brave new-you comes better career choices and the beautiful freedom to make your life your own.

After a short time in California — and 700 applications later — I secured full-time work at the University of Southern California. Current admissions scandals aside, at the time this was an experience of me going from working in a small community college to working at one of the most prestigious universities in the country. A university I thought I’d only experience through the movies it was mentioned in.

This is the result of taking flight regardless of fear.

4. It’s Actually Taking A Toll On Your Health

There is something to be said about seeking peace in this life. My bachelor’s degree is in Biology and I’m going to call on some of that right now.

When we consistently experience stress, there is — not surprising — a stress hormone that’s released called cortisol. The reason for this is rooted in the evolutionary make-up of our bodies. When our bodies sense stress signals on the outside, the same signals are sent on the inside that essentially says it’s time to get the hell out of here.

Now there may not be a saber-toothed tiger staring us down but rather a micro-managing boss — biologically, the effect on our body is the same. If my telling you that I have a degree in this stuff is not enough, have a look at this article by the Mayo Clinic. They’re pretty reliable.

Some of the side-effects of having this overabundance of cortisol levels are high blood pressure (hypertension), increased heart rates (tachycardia), anxiety, depression, and basically just hating your life.

So, if you’d like to hate your life less and lower that BP, walk away from the origin of your angst.

5. You Deserve To Live A Life You Want To Live

This is a big one because for some reason we are all really prone to thinking we deserve way less or nothing good at all. Maybe just reading that headline made you a bit uncomfortable. It kind of made me uncomfortable to write because I’m human and experience the same doubts that you do. But I’ve been practicing for a long time telling myself that I do deserve good things in life. I do deserve to enjoy the work I do. I do deserve to feel that I’m living a meaningful life. I do deserve to love the life I’m living. And you deserve it too.

It’s not easy to get to this thought process as we are naturally negative in our thinking. “Oh, that’s for someone else… I could never do that… Well, he had more resources than me… She’s prettier than me…”

All of that negative self-talk usually happens without our even noticing it. When we actively practice saying things like — “I deserve this… I can’t wait to be in that place… I am good enough to do this.” — it shines a light on those false thoughts we have about ourselves and ultimately destroys them. Here’s the thing though, at first it sounds foolish. At first we don’t actually believe what we’re saying to ourselves but with more and more practice and speaking truth over those lies we will begin to see ourselves as we should… Capable of anything.

You’re capable of anything.

You’re especially capable of walking away from something bad to find something very good.