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Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

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Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#31

Post by agentultra »

Maybe it's just the bias lens, but it seems like the dream is to work for yourself.

If everyone did that... well what would it be like?

I still treat myself as a free agent when I work as a salaried employee for someone else. I am invested in what I do with my time and want to accomplish things like anyone else. I just don't find it very practical to put my wife and I through the stress of financial insecurity just so I can get a kick out of my day. That being said, I don't just work for anyone to get a paycheque (at least not anymore now that I have some years of experience behind me).

I prefer jobs where I'm treated as part of a team. I like to think that the company hired me because it found my skills and experiences useful to their goals. I'm also more likely to work for a company who is working on things I am interested in working on.

Some people though; they take any job they can get. They need the paycheque. You'll wear yourself in that kind of job. But sometimes it's unavoidable.

The only thing I don't like about articles like this: the mention of the big-ass six-figure salary that they walked away from. If it wasn't about the money, then who are you trying to impress? "Hey guys, I could've bought a nice home in the hills and a lambourghini if I wanted to, but I'm way too cool for that." Give me a break.

I understand the pursuit of happiness and so the article wasn't a total loss of time. I just think he could've changed the headline to be more appropriate to what he was actually writing about. It's too sensationalist.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#32

Post by ulrich »

quan wrote: post #28
TomOfTTB wrote: post #2

I don't know. This seems stupid to me. I'm all for chasing your dream when you have an actual dream to chase. But to quit a good job that pays well just to randomly walk around and try to figure out what you want to do doesn't seem wise to me. It seems much wiser to wait till you have an idea that you want to pursue and then quit. That way you have more resources to devote to the idea that you're actually dedicated t…

I recently quit my high-paying job, in fact, today is my last day, and "randomly walk around" is exactly what I'm going to do. For most of my 27 years, I've been trying to do the "wise" thing by getting good grades, graduating from a good college, working at a good job, finishing my master, etc. For once, I want to be foolish. My number 1 reason for quitting is I want to get off the addiction of the constant paycheck…

So you are 27 years old (same as me)?! For how long have you been working now? I'm asking, because I am also thinking about when to quit my current job and what to do next. What holds me back are just two things. First, its the paragliding course I already paid for but didn't finish yet. And second its the feeling that leaving my job would be too early right now. I have been promoted as teamleader just one year after graduating. But still I envy people like you who are able to simply quit and start a new thing.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#33

Post by Bluem00 »

ulrich wrote: post #32
quan wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I recently quit my high-paying job, in fact, today is my last day, and "randomly walk around" is exactly what I'm going to do. For most of my 27 years, I've been trying to do the "wise" thing by getting good grades, graduating from a good college, working at a good job, finishing my master, etc. For once, I want to be foolish. My number 1 reason for quitting is I want to get off the addiction of the constant paycheck…

So you are 27 years old (same as me)?! For how long have you been working now? I'm asking, because I am also thinking about when to quit my current job and what to do next. What holds me back are just two things. First, its the paragliding course I already paid for but didn't finish yet. And second its the feeling that leaving my job would be too early right now. I have been promoted as teamleader just one year after…

You will always be able to come up with reasons not to take risks, and they don't have to be particularly good ones as long as they give you an excuse to wait a little longer. There will never be a right moment. I recommend you evaluate whether you're happy with your current situation, and if not, then seek to change it. Your choice isn't simply between keeping the job and quitting it; perhaps you can find a different way.

I was in a similar situation as you are; running a small programming team at age 27, with no real commitments. I decided to stay because the opportunity seemed too good to pass up, but I'll never know where I'd be now if I took a risk back then. Over those three years it seemed like everyone I interviewed ran their own project. Many popped back and forth between working as part of a team, and running teams several times in their career, so it's not as special an accomplishment as I'd thought at the time. Now it's three years later, and I've gone part time and started telecommuting so that I can travel wherever I want and have time to figure out what I want to do next. Your choices may vary. Good luck!

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#34

Post by byoung2 »

FreeRadical wrote: post #17
cstross wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

to quit a good job that pays well just to randomly walk around and try to figure out what you want to do doesn't seem wise to me. It seems much wiser to wait till you have an idea that you want to pursue and then quit. If you follow that course, you'll never quit. Because nothing stops you figuring out what you really want to do with your life like being continually busy, chasing someone else's dream. Time flies when…

But this guy wasn't continually busy, he was finishing at 4pm everyday.

I work 7am-4pm (which means 5am-6pm if you count commute time), and though there is plenty of time to work on my own projects in the evenings, I find myself mentally drained most days, so what takes me an hour to do at work takes 2 or 3 at home in the evening. Weekends are more productive.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#35

Post by generalk »

FreeRadical wrote: post #17
cstross wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

to quit a good job that pays well just to randomly walk around and try to figure out what you want to do doesn't seem wise to me. It seems much wiser to wait till you have an idea that you want to pursue and then quit. If you follow that course, you'll never quit. Because nothing stops you figuring out what you really want to do with your life like being continually busy, chasing someone else's dream. Time flies when…

But this guy wasn't continually busy, he was finishing at 4pm everyday.

And starting at 7am. That's nine hours out of the day. Even if you're not 100% busy during that stretch, you're still not free to let your mind wander and do the things that matter to you. You're mentally occupied.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#36

Post by jbarham »

jakevoytko wrote: post #27
asmithmd1 wrote: post #23

"A job is low risk. ... risk is shouldered by the owners of the company, and that’s why they stand to gain (or lose) a lot more." Not true, as an employee you bear all the risk of being laid-off if the company does not do well; but do not benefit from the upside.

Looking at it from another angle, the laid-off employee loses nothing - they simply stop receiving. However, the owners are on the hook if the company goes belly-up The entrepreneurial system is organized so that the risk takers are the money makers when a company succeeds. It doesn't really make sense any other way - why else would someone start a business that might fail and cost a fortune?

A lot of those laid-off people who "simply stop receiving" their paychecks are losing their houses. And the whole point of incorporation is that if the company goes bust, the owners are not personally liable.

The risk-reward incentives for being an employee vs. employer are not quite so simple as you make out.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#37

Post by steveklabnik »

quan wrote: post #28
TomOfTTB wrote: post #2

I don't know. This seems stupid to me. I'm all for chasing your dream when you have an actual dream to chase. But to quit a good job that pays well just to randomly walk around and try to figure out what you want to do doesn't seem wise to me. It seems much wiser to wait till you have an idea that you want to pursue and then quit. That way you have more resources to devote to the idea that you're actually dedicated t…

I recently quit my high-paying job, in fact, today is my last day, and "randomly walk around" is exactly what I'm going to do. For most of my 27 years, I've been trying to do the "wise" thing by getting good grades, graduating from a good college, working at a good job, finishing my master, etc. For once, I want to be foolish. My number 1 reason for quitting is I want to get off the addiction of the constant paycheck…

> My number 1 reason for quitting is I want to get off the addiction of the constant paychecks.

This is interesting... it reminds me of what I tell people when they ask if I'm going to finish college.

I can count the classes I'm missing on one hand, so I often get asked when I'm going back, and they're shocked when I say I'm not. Basically, at this point, a degree will only stop me from getting boring, corporate jobs. I don't want those. But if my startup were to go under, it'd be real tempting... and then I'd get caught in a tarpit. I'd just rather not risk it, and make it harder on myself to get boring jobs.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#38

Post by jimbokun »

xaviershay wrote: post #8
shykes wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> That way you have more resources to devote to the idea that you're actually dedicated to. Sometimes the scarce resource is not money, but free time and mental availability. "Randomly walking around" could increase his chances of bumping into a hidden opportunity. I say go for it.

Exactly. I suspect you can't find a dream sitting at a desk. I have plenty of savings, and plenty of earning potential - if I really get stuck (I don't believe likely) I can always pick up another job. Money is a means, not an end.

"I have plenty of savings..."

I think this is the key. You have two years of runway to figure out what to do next (according to the blog). That money in the bank is a lot more security than any job can offer, by itself. Staying in your job for another two years might be the greater risk, when opportunity costs are taken into account.

Re: Why I Quit A Six Figure Job

#39

Post by ergo98 »

TomOfTTB wrote: post #2

I don't know. This seems stupid to me. I'm all for chasing your dream when you have an actual dream to chase. But to quit a good job that pays well just to randomly walk around and try to figure out what you want to do doesn't seem wise to me. It seems much wiser to wait till you have an idea that you want to pursue and then quit. That way you have more resources to devote to the idea that you're actually dedicated t…

>It seems much wiser to wait till you have an idea that you want to pursue and then quit.

Every stripper and/or prostitute, the story goes, plans on quitting once they make enough money to go to school/open that greasy spoon/move somewhere else.

In reality they end up `quitting' when the system is done with them and tosses them out.

9-5ers often live out the same lie.

You talk about rational choices, but what normally happens when someone has a comfortable, non-challenging job is that they start to compensate for missed excitement by filling their life with expensive habits (whether it's drugs, addiction to games and electronics, expensive cars, the cottage, etc). Soon they are completely bound to their job, those golden-handcuffs demolishing any potential they might have had.

Anyways, I've got to go off and look at a new car. My current one is 2 years old and is getting a little embarrassing.

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