The Exhilaration of Leaving a Job
“Few things match the high of quitting a job. To reclaim your life, howsoever briefly. To be - if only for a time - your own master.”
Every time I've quit a job, I’ve done it a little too late. I’ve waited till my dissatisfaction with the job started to invade the rest of my life—till I was complaining about work at home, with friends, with work friends.... Maybe you know the drill?
I don't recommend this course of action. I find it personally unsatisfying to do a lot of complaining, and it definitely doesn’t make me a more interesting person to be around. And I’ve learned that holding on to something unsatisfying is ultimately unrewarding.
In the Netflix series Chef's Table, Argentine chef Francis Mallmann talks about the people who work for him, how skilled they are, how much fun they have as a group, and how much inspired and magical work they do together.
And then he tells the interviewer: when you and your employee reach the point when you’re really excited, when you’re doing the best work together that you can imagine? That's the point when it’s time to stop working together.
I heard him say that and my first response was wow, what a harsh view. But then I realized that going out on a high note is actually an incredible way to stay inspired. Rather than waiting till things start getting worse and worse, why not make a change that comes from a place of confidence and pride?
How might that help each of us shape our lives, to be looking for new and interesting way to use our skills once they’re developed?
I’m excited to take this insight into my own life. I’m ready to look for my own peak performance in a new way: as a jumping-off point.