Making Big Decisions for Balance—Why I Left My “Dream” Job in Search of a Balanced Life

“Balance is not something you find, it is something you create”—Jana Kingsford

I absolutely love this quote because it made me realize that I have the power to do something about my unbalanced and unfulfilled career I had created for myself.

Why I left my dream job.

Dream jobs are not always what they seem. The reality of the work often differs from our expectations. As a result, people are many times disappointed with their dream jobs—and that’s exactly what happened to me.

For the longest time, I thought that my career as a graphic designer would give me my happiness. That once I got there I’d be happy just like everyone else, but I was so incredibly wrong. I thought that it would all be better at the top. That every single hour worked would be returned to me tenfold. And it was, just not with what I wanted—fulfilment. What I got instead was money and prestige and busyness, but deeply lacked fulfilment. It took me over 10 years to realize that I had driven myself into a miserable existence. How did my ‘dream’ job turn into unreasonable workloads, extra-long commutes, unpredictable work schedule, dull projects, and a lack of work/life balance? I asked myself if this was it? Had I worked this hard all these years to be so incredibly sad about my situation? Had I been tricked?

To be honest, I hated it all. If my boss asked me to stay one minute longer at work, I would daydream about the whole damn place burning down.

“Oh, you didn’t realize you also needed this other thing done?”,
“you’re running late for our meeting and now I have to stay longer, again?”
“would I mind doing this other thing five minutes before I got off?

Typically, these things wouldn’t really bother me, but anything would set me off—I was even becoming resentful toward everyone and everything at work. I was so incredibly miserable and I wanted out. I hated my work, my commute, my projects, myself, and my life. I needed help. I was broken.

The importance of not waiting for “the right time” to make big life decisions.

When we’re stuck in miserable situations, there are many reasons why we wait for “the right time” to make a change. We’re either not ready, waiting for the “right” opportunity, afraid of the consequences, or we think that there will be a better time coming—which we all know there won’t be.

There will never be a perfect time. That’s just not how life works. But what if we can take action now? What if we could find courage now? What if we could take all those little steps now to start changing our lives?

I waited years for that perfect timing, but it never came. And with each year that passed I became more and more depressed. So, one day I decided to stop waiting. I decided I’d had enough and took the biggest leap of faith of my life. I finally made the decision to take ownership of my situation and create the balance I craved so dearly. I came home, sat on the dining table, and waited for Aaron. When he walked in I knew he knew there was something wrong. I was really unsure of how he was going to react, but to be honest, I was so desperate, I didn’t really care. “I’m putting my two-weeks’ notice at work” I said, and proceeded to cry like a baby because I was so scared. I was terrified. I had no other job lined up, felt defeated, and most of all, felt like I had let Aaron down. I knew deep inside, however, that I was doing the right thing for me.

Trust your intuition, your gut-feeling.

Intuition is one of the most powerful tools in life. It is the natural ability to know something without having learned it. Intuition can be defined as a sense that is not gained through reasoning or observation, but rather, through contact with reality that is felt in the body. I don't know whether intuition is some kind of subconscious knowledge or if it's just a feeling that tells you what the best decision is. It's difficult to explain, but I'm sure that some kind of knowledge or understanding comes with it.

When you're faced with a decision, take your time, think about the consequences of each option and trust your intuition. That’s exactly what I did in quitting my job and with getting my next one.

If you’re feeling a bit skeptical about intuition and that gut-feeling I’m talking about, check out this awesome article by Dr. Joe Dispenza

A week before my last day, a recruiter sent me a message on LinkedIn, but instead of deleting the message like I usually do, I decided to respond because I had a really strong gut-feeling to do so. I just “knew” I had to. I quickly got on a pre-screening call with her and then she said she was going to contact her boss for a second phone call. What’s funny about this is that she was hiring for a designer in the gaming industry—which I had zero to no experience in the field. I come from a traditional print and packaging design background. Despite knowing I wasn’t qualified, “something” inside of me kept telling me to keep moving forward. In hindsight, I was being led by my intuition—and I didn’t even really know it!

Fast forward a few days later and I had landed a 6-month contract job at Xbox with two days left at my current job. Between my current job and my new contract, I only had one day without pay. I honestly couldn’t believe my life. I was ecstatic!

You might be asking yourself, “so you left one job to jump into a similar one?” Great question because the answer is no, not at all. This job was different in the ways I wanted it to be. Most importantly, it had a shorter commute and was partially remote which allowed for a much healthier work/life balance. While that would have been enough by itself, it had the added benefits of being more exciting and having higher pay! This job was exactly aligned with the new balanced life I was now creating for myself.

My job at Xbox led me to my current job at Minecraft that I absolutely love! I now live in California literally next to the beach and am fully working remotely (not because of Covid). I may be guilty of running across the street to sunbathe at the beach during my lunch break, lol. I love everything about it—my coworkers, my bosses, my projects, but I especially love my work/life balance. It’s the best it’s ever been and I now have the time to fully and happily engage at work while also having the time to do the things I love outside of work. Who knew that I had the power within me to create the life I know I can have?

Amazing Lessons You Can Learn from the Change

I learned that fulfilled people always find the courage to make changes in their lives and not wait around for perfect timing. Some of the awesome lessons I learned, and that you can as well, are:

1. Fulfilled people are able to change careers, move cities, and even reinvent themselves.
2. Learn to fully trust in your intuition and let it guide you.
3. Understand that the awesome, fulfilled, lives you see are for you too.
4. Each of us is entitled to a truly fulfilled and happy life—for no other reason than being who we are.
5. Gain confidence that you can overcome and change even the worst situations you put yourself into.

In the end, it all starts with the awareness that something needs to change, followed by researching all available options, and finally taking action to make the change happen. Don’t second-guess yourself. Trust your intuition, your gut-feeling.

I say we stop wishing we could find that balanced life and we start creating it now. We hold all the cards in our hands, we make the choice. Not tomorrow, not next month, or next year—but today, right now.

Here are some practical steps if you’re considering a career change, or any other change, to find balance.

1. Write down THE action you know you have to take, put it on the wall, and make a plan with a date when you'll make the decision.
2. Save up to cover financially some of that 'off' time to figure out a more balanced job
3. Set a quit date
4. Find the next thing (job) that ACTUALLY aligns to the life you want.

Make sure to download our freebie worksheet that we’ve specifically made for you to make this process easier. Download it, fill it out, post it up on your wall, and start creating a balanced and fulfilled life!

Conclusion

Some people choose to quit their jobs for a variety of reasons which include finding a better work-life balance, more time with family and friends, or to be their own boss. It is not an easy choice to make as it usually involves a lot of planning, consideration and preparation both financially and emotionally, but if you consider what not making that choice will do, is it worth it? Regardless of the motivation that leads people to this decision, the benefits are clear. Choose you and you always win.

My advice to you? Trust your intuition, make a plan, and BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. You are meant for so much more, and that means a life where you feel fulfilled and happy. A life that is balanced with the things you want to experience and enjoy. You got this, and most importantly, you deserve this.