I Quit My Job

So that I can have a better future

[Photo by Author]

I have been working at a big corporate company for the past two years, and Friday is my last day.

My bosses didn’t see this coming, and many of my co-workers were sad to see me go; I learned through experience that when making moves in work life, to keep things close to my chest and to not feel an obligation to the company or my co-workers when deciding what’s best for me.

Two years ago, I moved out on my own post-divorce and with debt from school and a car loan.

I have lived in 3 different apartments within that time, and will be moving in with roommates when my current lease is up. I have accumulated even more medical debt for my mental health and chronic pain needs, and it has been looming over me. I need to make more money in order to catch up and feel more safe in my life.

My first year at this company was empowering and exciting.

I helped build up a completely new team and was happy to be getting my first-ever salary paycheck. My views of my work changed when my yearly review came up. After taking on a big automation/app development project, I thought I would be rewarded in some way. That was not the case. My paycheck rose by a whooping $0.40 per hour. I learned once again that we do not live in a meritocratic society and that corporations are only concerned about their status quo (making the rich people even richer).

I continued to be given more responsibility, and when I asked about a raise and title change, they said that they are working on it with HR.

They “worked” on that for another year, as I led multiple automation projects that were estimated to process millions of dollars in sales. This involved many nights working overtime with no increase in pay and a lot of additional stress. The position wasn’t offered to me until I put in my week’s notice that I am leaving for another company where I will be making more money and have a managerial title. My current company scrambled to keep me, but *could* not match my offer. I say *could* not because they are valued at 100+ billion dollars; they could invest in talent, but instead they choose to undervalue and exploit them.

It feels good to quit.

I LOVE QUITTING. I have been working since I was 15 years old. My first job was to hand out flyers and be a sign shaker for a pizza restaurant. I have worked at a snow cone stand, as a barista, a waitress, a math tutor, a physics teacher, and an astrophysicist. I have been on my own since my senior year of high school, and I’ve made the decisions that I needed to in order to survive the best I could. I have lived in three states and switched my housing many times. I have quit many jobs in my life, I have gotten a divorce, and I have stopped contact with unsafe people in my life. Quitting has been a stepping stone towards self-love for me. Quitting involves sitting in those rotten feelings and making steps towards getting out of them. Quitting is not always the answer, but sometimes it’s the only way to get where you want to go.

I am nervous for this new job, but excited about the opportunity to be compensated fairly for using this big, beautiful brain that I’ve been blessed with.

I’ve worked really hard for a very long time, and it’s my goal to make more financial security for myself. Changing jobs is HARD. Change is HARD. I make these hard choices for myself because I love and care for myself. Over this next year, I am aiming to pay off all my medical and car debt through very strict financial planning. I want to put myself in a position where I can have a savings account that helps me feel better about uncertainty. My life has been so uncertain for so long, and I want to build buffers for rest. I have autism level 1 and also PTSD; my mind and body feel like they need some deep rest. I would like to honor myself in ways that I was never allotted growing up. I quit my job so that I could feel more free.

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