The older I get the more I realize how blessed I am to get to do what I love with clients that are a pleasure to work with. Unfortunately, as time passes I continue to meet many people who are far less fortunate. Those for whom each day is a struggle, those who seem “trapped” in jobs that they don’t like. I worked with one such lady years ago. She too, was miserable and led off each day with a barrage of complaints that sounded like a cry for help. It seemed like every day I would ask her, “Why do you stay?” She replied with the typical responses for a while. “I need this job. I have bills to pay.” Or, “Everybody has to work somewhere.” Then one day she appeared in my office with a defeated, although relaxed, look on her face. She said that she wanted me to be the first to know that she was going to resign and move on. She said that she had thought long and hard about the question that she was frequently asked and that since she didn’t have an answer, she knew it was time to move on. One week later she was off on a new adventure.
In less than a month she stopped by to visit. Her eyes were bright and she wore a cheery smile that we had seldom seen. For the first time since I had known her, she seemed happy. And we were happy for her.
For most of us, our careers are a big part of who we are, and life is too short to stay stuck in a job that we don’t like or working with people who we don’t care for. Ask yourself the question, and if you can’t come up with the answer, have the faith and courage to move on. Why do YOU stay?