5 Reasons to Quit Your Job

Think working for an employer is the best way to earn a living? Here are my top 5 reasons to quit your job.

September 15th, 2010 by Becky Turner

10 Reasons to Quit Your Job

Once you leave full time education, getting a job may seem like a sensible thing to do. But for many people, it's not sensible at all. It's crazy. That's because they don't factor in basic needs and goals, such as:

ideal income potential
flexible working hours
job security
career development
career passion

When you boil it down, a lot of people can benefit from taking their career down the self-employed route. You can still perform the same kind of function you would for an employer (if that's what you really want) while reaping the rewards of being the CEO of your own mini enterprise.

In this article I'll explain my top 5 reasons to quit your job so you can see the true potential of working independently over being a wage slave.

1. Financial Freedom

Working for someone else usually means your income is fixed - whereby you are trading your time for money. This is a very limiting way to go about earning your fortune, don't you think?

Entrepreneurs look for ways to make money on autopilot, whether it's running a business, investing in stocks, or earning royalty payments. There is an initial effort required to set up an income stream, but then it runs in the background without requiring much further time or effort. In this way, you can scale up your income as much as you want.

When you work for another person, your income is largely capped. Even commission-based salespeople succumb to on-target-earnings, which still doesn't compare to earning money on autopilot. So why limit the amount of money you can earn each year? Why choose to make someone else rich? Because it's easier / more sensible / more rewarding?

Quitting your job is the first step in attaining financial freedom. If that sounds counterintuitive then you're not seeing the big picture. You'll never tap into unlimited wealth while you're still slaving away for someone else.

I'm speaking from personal experience. In 2007 I quit my job and emigrated to New Zealand. Instead of jumping headfirst back into the rat race I decided to become self employed. That first year I earned the equivalent of US $10,000. It was a blow to my bank account, but I expected that. I had some good savings to live off and a very supportive partner in Pete.

The next year, my earnings reached nearly US $20,000. Through multiple income streams, what started out as a trickle became a torrent. I worked just as hard that second year, but now I was reaping the rewards.

As I enter my third year, I'm on track to earn more than US $40,000 which is on a par with what I used to earn as a full time financial journalist. So while there may be a transition period to get through, the long term potential to grow your income makes it totally worth it. Since I quit my job my income has grown 100% year-on-year. That is financial freedom.

If you can't handle an initial drop in income then why not start a sideline business in your spare time? Building an income-generating website is an ideal low risk / high reward proposition. The financial investment is minimal and you can work on it as little or as much as you want. It may only generate a few hundred dollars initially but remember the old proverb: a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. In time it could become a major income stream that replaces your full time job. And when that happens, you'll emerge wiser and wealthier with your own passive income business to support you for years to come.

2. Personal Freedom

Another great thing about being self employed is that you have considerably more personal freedom. Ditch the alarm clock, the daily commute, the dress codes, the office rules, and the stupid clocking-in mentality. These are the things that most office slaves complain about, and they'd be right to. Why do we hand over so much of our freedom just to earn a living?

Another great freedom thief is The Idiot Boss. These are people that fall into management even though they have terrible people skills. They love to micromanage and enforce the slave rules (sorry, Employee Handbook) - especially when they don't really matter, like eating at your desk, arriving 5 minutes late, or removing your shoes under the table. WHAT?! You took your shoes off in the office?? That's a written warning for you Missy!!!

When you quit your job and become self-employed, you free yourself from the corporate shackles and the pointless slave rules. You don't have to entrain yourself to follow these dumb policies, nor put up with oppressive management and office politics. You are totally free to run your day-to-day business as you see fit - which makes earning a living a lot more fun!

3. Job Security

If you think you have job security working for an employer - think again. They are many reasons why you could be laid off tomorrow, not least because of the devastating impact of the financial recession. Companies of all shapes and sizes are being forced to trim the fat off their workforce, and that includes axing higher ranking positions like middle management.

What is it exactly that makes you feel secure in your current job? Why does having one income stream feel safer than having many?

When you work for an employer, you put your fate in their hands. If they decide you're redundant, then you have no recourse. You'll be out the door and jobless before you know what hit you.

When you work for yourself, you can recession-proof your business and protect yourself from the sudden loss of 100% of your income. You can implement multiple income sources and ensure you walk away with a profit every day. Being self employed means better job security. Fact.

4. Career Development

As an independent worker, you have the freedom to choose what projects you work on and control the direction your business takes. Freelancers in particular have the opportunity to take on more challenging projects and charge higher rates as they gain more experience. As a webmaster, I have full control over the content of each website I create and how I monetize them. When you're the CEO of your own company, you are in charge of your own career development - there is nothing (and no-one) holding you back. This keeps your day-to-day work fresh and fulfiling.

Among wage slaves, career development is a lot more sporadic. If you want a promotion you have to sit up and beg for one. You have to wear your shiniest shoes and put in overtime just to show your boss that you're committed. Even then, the decision is totally out of your hands. You have to rely on your "superiors" to see your hidden potential, find room in the budget for your new salary, then create an opening in the corporate hierarchy. It often leads to more responsibility and more hours, just so you can scrape in a couple of extra Gs this year. I don't recommend it.

The common alternative is to find a new boss at a new company so you can step right into a job promotion. In my experience this is the best way to go about getting a decent pay rise too, because you don't have to justify a large salary jump when you're moving between companies.

However, switching companies just to move up in the world isn't exactly desirable either. Whichever way you look at it, the best way to take control of your career development is to put it squarely in your own hands.

5. Passion

Many people fall into boring office jobs and stick with the same career path for reasons even they don't understand. It's called Chasing The Carrot. You're so distracted working towards the next big reward - a promotion, or a pay rise - to realize that you don't even find your job challenging any more. In fact, it's downright dull. Years of your life are falling away and you're wasting it working the same old job just because it's comfortable.

Whatever happened to chasing the dream?

I have utmost respect for people who pursue a line of work they enjoy. Even if it does mean working for an evil employer :) When the passion is there, it makes it all worth it. Since your career takes up such a large amount of your life, it has to be doing something you enjoy - otherwise, what's the point? Do you really believe you were destined for such monotony? When is it going to change? Or, more importantly, when are you going to take the action required to change it?

This is the #1 reason why I quit almost every job I ever had. I've had some interesting office jobs and worked with some great people, but ultimately the work didn't hold my interest long term. I just couldn't get passionate about the work. So I quit, sometimes without another job to go to. This decision will depend on your financial circumstances - to a degree. That doesn't mean you have an excuse to put it off. That old chestnut could last your whole life: "Well I thought about becoming an artist back in my 20s but I never had enough savings to quit my job. It's ok, I enjoyed working in data entry for all those years. Honestly, it was fine."

So if you suffer from the dreaded Sunday Night Feeling, open your eyes and take a good look at your career options. Don't waste another day of your life pursuing a career that you don't feel passionate about.

Final Thoughts

There are undoubtedly more than 5 reasons to quit your job. If you're in the mood to gripe there are probably a million reasons. We've all been there, stuck in a position that stresses us out or bores us to tears and only serves to suck our souls away. But what do people do? They quit and dive right into the next dead end position. But that also has an expiry date.

When does it occur to people to become self employed? For many, it never does. They think there are too many risks involved. They confuse the concept of being self-employed with being unemployed. They think that if they don't have a boss to tell them to get out of bed every day they'll end up sitting on their ass watching daytime TV and having no life whatsoever. If you genuinely think that's a risk, then it probably is. If that's your attitude to seizing your career then it really wont go anywhere. That's the sad truth about many people who want to live the dream but don't believe in themselves enough to achieve it: they don't even try.

If, however, you do have the drive and determination to take what you want, then you have every reason to quit your job. For people like you, becoming self-employed should be the rule and not the exception. It shouldn't be considered risky or daring to go into business alone. It should be the natural route which takes you exactly where you want to go. It creates the freedoms you yearn for and enables you to determine your own future happiness... Go, get to it!