The Blog

TGIM: I Quit

Welcome back to Thank God It’s Monday!

tl;dr They say winners never quit. But in order to win at something new, you have to quit your old ways.

Around 12 months ago, I put my notice in for a job I’d been at for seven years. It was a part-time job at the gym, but I spent most of my days there. The community was close-knit amongst the staff, the members, and my clients. I grew up there and it largely inspired the reason why I do what I do today.

It was hard telling the owners I wanted to leave. It was even harder to tell my clients. But something was nagging at me for a long time, I knew it was time to move on. It felt like I was betraying all of them by quitting, but I knew that without leaving, I was stunting my growth and potential.


Over the next several months, I quit my online nutrition coaching job, finished grad school again, and finally, in February, put my notice in at the hospital where I worked full time as a PA. I decided to go per diem (aka pick up shifts at my discretion). It has been a quitting-season.

Quitting felt difficult every time. It felt like I was letting someone (or many people) down. And it’s hard when you’re comfortable with the environment and the role. It can feel almost silly to walk away from something that’s a good opportunity when you enjoy it. But that internal nagging voice persisted and knew it was time for a new chapter.

Is there something you have been dragging out because you’re comfortable in the role, maybe even compensated well for? But deep down you know it’s holding you back from a better opportunity?

This could be a job or a relationship. You get comfortable, and because we’re human, we like to stay where we’re comfortable. But not quitting is only a disservice to yourself. We’re meant to continue developing and growing. You’re inner voice will continue to nag at you to move on, but only you can make the difficult decision to do so, even if it means quitting.

While success necessitates persistence, it requires persistence in the right direction.


Clarify what direction you have to move in order to break through to your next level. Take notes on what current roles you have that could be holding you back. Like pruning a rose bush, you have to cut off the dead ends to let the plant flourish (I’m not a botanist so that might be oversimplified, sorry plant lovers). Where can you prune in your life?

If you found some value in this, please share it with a friend you think would enjoy it! And let me know if you’d like to be added to get TGIM.

This week, my podcast recommendation is from Science Vs. “Measles: How Worried Should We Be?”

With that, let me know what you’re going to quit next! (Don’t worry, I’m not quitting TGIM any time soon!)

Until next time,

Shannon

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