It’s Sunday. And that means tomorrow’s Monday. The start of a new work week.
You may be excited. You may be dreading it.
I used to be in the latter category. Well not exactly dread. But unexcited.
So I decided to walk into my boss’s office and quit. To move to Morocco. Where I had no job lined up. But I didn’t care. I’d reached my expiry date in the public service. I was starting to rot. To complain. To get frustrated. Reached my limits with unions. I was unmotivated. Coffee breaks and after-work drinks with some fabulous colleagues got me through the day.
In other words, I had lost the passion I once had. And it was no longer the professional life I wanted to live.
Of course, I’d given it some thought for quite awhile. About a year in fact.
Where would I go? What would I do? Would I stick to a career in public relations? What if it didn’t work out? Was I crazy for giving up a government job? Just read any newspaper and you’d hear all about the global recession, the struggle to find a job, high unemployment rates. So if you had a job, you should keep it, right?
No.
I knew I had to dare to follow my dreams.
So I gave up the benefits. The 9 to 5 life. The job that “people work their entire lives to obtain.”
The payoff?
A dream job. A city where opportunities seem to be endless. And creativity is abundant which means opportunities to explore new projects. And develop new interests. The past week has been absolutely fabulous and filled with exciting potential opportunities. Ones that I would have never imagined possible a short while ago.
So maybe your time to quit that job you hate isn’t now. But perhaps it’s time to start thinking about an “exit” strategy. An alternative. A cure for that Sunday-evening feeling.
Let’s keep in touch and motivate each other to follow our dreams!
Thanks for reminding me that I’m right to be giving all of that up! It’s impossible not to have doubts sometimes. Looking forward to discussing all the possibilities and creativity with you later this month!
A good friend of mine used to say to me, “it’s not prison, you can come back [to Canada] any time”. She’s right. We just need to keep these people in our lives to remind us why we decide to make the changes we did. Can’t wait to meet when you are over here in the next couple of weeks.
Good for you Mandy for having the courage to do that! It is absolutely incredible and reading your blog we can all see just how happy you are with that decision that I think most people would not have the courage to make! You go girl!!
Hi Mandy, so happy you are following your dreams. I had a year in my old job too before I finally left and it was a tough year to get through. I’ve been traveling now for 10 months and actually just came back from spending almost 3 weeks on Morocco. I did think about the idea of living and working there, but since I don’t speak French or Arabic I thought the opportunities would be limited without the language skills. What are your thoughts on this?
Perhaps in tourism?
I’ve worked in pharmaceuticals for a long time, doing training and monitoring research trials.
How are the living costs vs salaries in Marrakech?
Hi Mandy!
I just found your blog and am working my way through all the posts. I first started visiting Morocco in 2009 and now been 7 times. After my second visit in 2010 I was ready to move. A few more obligations here in the USA that I can’t quite shake loose from. But I think it’s getting close to time to come up with an exit strategy. Hope you don’t mind comments on old posts, I’ll be avidly reading the rest of your blog while I figure out how to get there! Oh and I just got home from 3 weeks in Morocco in early July and already have plans to go back in November. I’m now up to visiting twice a year for 3 weeks at a time. I know where I belong. 🙂
Best wishes!
Hi Vicki,
I look forward to your comments and hopefully meeting you in Morocco one day soon!