Freedom to quit your dream job.

[Urchina]

Hi, all. While I haven't been spending a lot of time posting on the boards lately, I thought I'd check in to share a change in my life that our FI/RE approach has made possible.

I just resigned from a dream job.

On paper, this is not a logical decision. The pay was good, the work schedule was extremely flexible, the work was in a field I care a lot about and I had tremendously positive relationships with my management, team, and most people I worked with. The job played to my strengths and came with lots of opportunities for growth and recognition.

I didn't think that burnout was going to come for me until it did. And I decided to take a career intermission before I was too far gone (after taking a long vacation, with the full support of my boss, to see if I just needed a break). My last day is near the end of the month.

The only reason I can do this is that we've lived well below our means since we both started being responsible for our own living expenses. We've saved diligently and kept lifestyle inflation as low as we could manage. And we've been really fortunate to have careers that paid a living wage. As a result, we can afford this.

My partner enjoys a challenging and stable job, and will continue working. I will keep my side gig, which I love, and after some time off resting and caring for family will think about either re-entering the field I just left or a career shift into a couple of other areas that interest me and that I have contacts and experience in.

We are not fully FI and are not sure we want to be RE, but I am really grateful for the support we've received from this community and others who have shown us that the same things that can get you to RE can also get you the freedom to choose what work you do and when you do it.

So here's to being financially flexible!

 

[RetireeRobert]

Congratulations on so arranging your affairs to gain yourself this freedom. Nice to have options, especially when one gives oneself those options.

 

[rodi]

Congratulations on having the freedom to make the choice you made. Burnout can cause significant physical damage - so you are smart to take a step back.

 

[teetee]

I am nearly burning out at my work and already have a million+ in net worth. Currently I am considering taking my first vacation day of this year in November. Hopefully four long weekends and just enjoy some alone time instead of quitting and don't have to get stressed out on catching up work after going back. I have not even worked for 3 yrs at this company.

My FIRE goal is 4.6m but that would take one more decade to reach.

 

[Ready]

It sounds like it was your dream job until it wasn’t any more. Because if you were burned out from it, that pretty much means it no longer is your dream job. So congratulations on recognizing this and realizing it’s time to move on and do something different.

 

[Urchina]

I was starting to have some physical impacts that doctors haven't been able to figure out. One of the things I plan to as part of this intermission is work on physical fitness / flexibility. Fingers crossed we're catching it in time so my mobility isn't permanently affected.

 

[ugeauxgirl]

Good for you! Like you I loved my job until I got burned out. You were smarter than me though, you quit before you were too far gone.

 

[HawkeyeNFO]

I'm in a similar spot. Job is easy, standard 40 hours, good pay, but the problem is that I just don't really care any more. Watching the leadership continuously be forced into bad decisions despite their workers' valiant efforts, has gotten old. So with about $2.5M saved up from LBYM for a couple of decades, I'm looking to take a break. Not necessarily retire, just take a break.

 

[pacergal]

Yep, LBYM, savings, and a good plan will allow more flexibility.
Good for you for noticing you need a change and acting on it.

 

[armor99]

I must admit, been feeling the same at the moment. I just become 100% debt free. Have a net worth of almost 2mil, retirement assets of 1.4mil.
Just got back from a vacation, and thought today… so why am I still doing this? Nothing wrong with the job, nice people, easy for the moment. Making more than I ever thought possible. But such is the hazard of becoming debt free, you start realizing that you suddenly “CAN” do things or not if you want..

 

[Urchina]

Thanks for the sharing and support, all. I have an update I thought the boards might find interesting.

I have been talking to work contacts both inside and outside of my agency, preparing people for the transition. Everyone I have had a conversation with so far has said something along these lines:
1. We'll miss you a lot.
2. We are so happy for you
3. We are really proud of you for making a move that puts yourself first, and we are glad you are being open about this when you talk about why you are leaving. We wish more people had open conversations about stepping back from a role as one of many possible good career outcomes.

So: very positive reception, and people really do want to talk about professional careers that don't necessarily follow a pre-ordained trajectory.

It's been nice.

 

[RetireeRobert]

Thanks for the sharing and support, all. I have an update I thought the boards might find interesting.

I have been talking to work contacts both inside and outside of my agency, preparing people for the transition. Everyone I have had a conversation with so far has said something along these lines:
1. We'll miss you a lot.
2. We are so happy for you
3. We are really proud of you for making a move that puts yourself first, and we are glad you are being open about this when you talk about why you are leaving. We wish more people had open conversations about stepping back from a role as one of many possible good career outcomes.

So: very positive reception, and people really do want to talk about professional careers that don't necessarily follow a pre-ordained trajectory.

It's been nice.

Thanks for the thread update. Nice to hear stories closed, all too often the story is started then we are left to wonder, what happened?

 

[Dean56]

I was starting to have some physical impacts that doctors haven't been able to figure out. One of the things I plan to as part of this intermission is work on physical fitness / flexibility. Fingers crossed we're catching it in time so my mobility isn't permanently affected.

Stress is a killer. You made the right choice. I know a guy that was super burned out and there was no recovering from it. Glad you saw the signs and left your dream job. Life and your physical well being are more important.

 

[brydanger]

Great work!!!
The entire point of working toward FI should be happiness and doing what you want when you want it!

We were not (far from) FI when we walked away from our jobs and I continue to be amazed at what a great decision it was. I now realize that the primary benefit (other than just health and happiness) was how much more aware we were of opportunities that we would have simply missed when working at megacorp.
Since then, not only do we see the opportunities flying by, but we also have the energy and excitement to go after them...and somehow that's kept us going for almost 10yrs.

Here's to listening to what you need/want, and here to it leading to somewhere better then you can possibly imagine!!

 

[jollystomper]

Congratulations! I had my dream job and was not burnt out from it. I just decided why keep working with a shorter "runway" left in life, and instead be able to wake up and doing what I wanted to. Fortunately our savings and investment growth supported that, and I was able to glide into retirement. Enjoy!