Share from Leah

September! Two years ago, I woke up with a knot in my stomach because it was the first day of the month I would quit my 9-5 job. I was… terrified!

It will forever be one of the best decisions I ever make.

It’s also still one of my proudest business moments, even though it was nearly two years ago and so much has happened since then. Here’s why…

My dad suddenly passed away six months before I quit my 9-5 job. When he passed away, my side hustle was starting to make a bit of money, but not nearly enough to quit my job, and I was often filled with doubt and sadness about how slow things were going.

Before he passed away, I was on the path to try and quit my 9-5 job. But truthfully, I was frequently lost on that path. I constantly took detours, wondering if I should change niches, wait a few extra years, go to grad school first…overall lots of dabbling, not ever commitment.

When he suddenly passed, it quickly and intensely hit me: I was not making the most out of my life. Yes, I was happy, and things were fine. But I knew I wasn’t living my full potential, and I had been coming with excuses as to why that was for far too long.

“Grad school is the right thing to do!”
“I can’t invest in my side hustle when I’m not even sure what my side hustle is yet”
“People that quit their jobs must have tens of thousands of savings- I don’t”

These sound responsible, right? Maybe they even sound familiar? I firmly believed these all for years. But when my dad’s life was cut short, it put everything into perspective. Responsible is not the goal. Belief in myself is the goal. Passing away without regret is the goal.

When he passed away, I swore to myself that I was done with this “maybe one day” thinking. I set my quit date for six months from then. I gave myself six months to exceed my 9-5 job income with my side hustle. To figure out my offerings. To believe in myself.

And six months later, that’s what I did.

It was one of the most challenging six months of my life. Working day and night to get this business off the ground was exhausting on its own, especially with a 9-5 job taking up my days. But doing it all with intense shock and grief was another level of challenging.

At the same time, it will also forever be one of the most important and rewarding six months of my life. It’s when I really learned the power of the mind. It’s when I realized that excuses are only in our heads. That we live in a world with endless possibilities if we only have the courage to pursue them.

Now, I’d love to hear from you! Have you quit your 9-5 job? What was it like when you said goodbye to the 9-5 life?

If you haven’t yet, what’s your ideal date? Email me back- it makes it real!