From Corporate America Saleswoman to Blogger : Why I Quit My Job

i quit my job

Financial freedom is the new American dream. Well, let’s face it, it’s always been the American dream, but now more than ever. We are continually seeing the costs of goods rise, home prices skyrocket, and the debt we’re accumulating from higher education snowball. And now, we’re seeing that dream’s reach falling further and further away from our grasp.

Perhaps then, that dream is these days is a bit skewed. I, like most red blooded Americans, fell deep into the money trap. I thought the more money I made, the easier life would get, and the happier I would be. Yes, money is nice to have, but it definitely can’t buy you happiness. Let me give you a little background.

I consider myself to be EXTREMELY hardworking. I attended college at UC Santa Barbara and graduated with a double major (in Communication and Sociology) and minor (Professional Writing). The reasons I chose those majors and minor was simple: I enjoyed taking the classes that were offered under them. You’d think that would help me to understand that I would probably enjoy a career in a similar field: journalism, social worker, or even blogger (ahem!).

But when thinking about a career path, the first thing that came to mind was not whether I’d enjoy my job, but if I could do it well and how much money I’d be making. Being a liberal arts kind of woman, numbers were NOT my thing. So a career in finance was out. But sales…sales I thought was interesting. I could be around people all day, there were no “absolutes” (or so I thought), and, if I did well, as a salesperson I could make more money than any other career path I was considering.

So living in the money hungry America that we live in, and trying to attain a life for myself that I had grown up to believe was “comfortable,” I chose a career in sales.

My Career Path in Sales : All About The Money and Status

i quit my job

I immediately got a job in the San Francisco Bay Area. It wasn’t my dream job, but it was in sales, and I knew I could eventually get to where I wanted to be. “Where was that?” you ask. In medical sales. That industry had a reputation for employing the best of the best salespeople, and for paying the highest commissions. Naturally, I wanted to be the best and make the most amount of money possible. So I worked my butt off to get there.

After a few years in my first role, I grew tired. My job did not pay commissions, and I thought, “If only I got paid for the sales I make, I would be much happier”. So I went searching for that next step towards my ultimate goal of becoming a medical sales professional.

I ended up being hired into a sales job with a pharmaceutical company. For those of you that don’t know the difference, pharmaceutical sales reps sell pharmaceutical drugs into doctor’s offices and pharmacies, while medical sales reps sell medical devices into hospitals. I wasn’t to my goal yet, but I was one step closer to my “dream job” (or so I thought). This new position paid out bonuses every 4 months, and good ones too! Surely, I would be much happier than at my previous position.

Two and a half years I slaved away, working 12 hour days most days. And to my credit, I made a pretty penny when bonus time came around. But something was wrong. I was still miserable. I had virtually no social life because I was working so hard and so often.

Now, if you’re doing what you love, 12 hour days don’t matter because you’re doing what you like to do. But sales wasn’t my passion, it was my JOB. I didn’t hate it, but I wasn’t passionate about it either. And I was in it for the end goal: the money. I didn’t realize this at the time, though, and thought that it was time to move towards my end goal of becoming a medical device sales rep. Surely, if I was able to catch my dream job, all would be right in the world.

Soon after deciding to search, I landed my DREAM sales job. It was with a reputable medical device company, with much higher commissions than I was making at the pharmaceutical company. JACKPOT! I had done it. I had landed my dream job (again, or so I thought), and life would be sweet.

But again, I was wrong. A year into that job and I knew something was off. I was doing great, hitting my sales numbers and making some great money. I even was able to buy a house with all of the money I had saved through my years of hard work. The original “American Dream”.

But I was constantly stressed. The sales numbers were lofty, and they would increase every time I reached my goal. Have you ever have a dream where you’re climbing a mountain and you get to the top, only to realize it’s not the top. And there’s a whole other side of the mountain you didn’t see that you still have to climb? That is what I felt like.

And it’s not like I COULDN’T do it. I absolutely could. I could do anything I set my mind to, and I could do it well. But did I want to? Or more importantly, did I enjoy it or get a thrill from the “sale” or the “climb”? Unfortunately, the answer was no. I had no motivation to keep climbing. And nothing, not even a nice paycheck, could make me enjoy the work I was doing.

If you’ve ever had a job where you’re constantly stressed, or extremely unfulfilled, you know that it sucks. Just plain old sucks. And you feel trapped. This is how I felt. This is the ONLY career I had known, this was the only thing I would be hired to do, and this was the only way I could make a decent living (or, again, so I thought).

Not to mention, I am EXTREMELY prideful. I had worked incredibly hard to get to where I was in my career, and thousands of people would kill to have what I had. So why was I complaining? It seemed wrong. But yet, I was not happy. Not one bit.

My Job Realization

i quit my job

Feeling cornered into a career I couldn’t stand, I confided in my husband, Travis one day. I told him I was miserable, and he told me to quit. QUIT? I thought, I’m not a quitter! And I had worked too hard and too long to achieve what I had achieved in my career. Besides, what else would I do? I couldn’t make any money outside of sales.

Travis, having an entrepreneurial nature (something that was totally foreign to my internal sense of comfort and everything I knew to be right in the world) told me to start a blog. He knew how much I enjoyed crafting and DIY. He had seen the joy on my face as I prepared decorations for our wedding, and designed rooms in our new home.

I had mentioned to him that if I could do anything in the world, I’d be an event planner. But I wouldn’t know where to begin, and neither did he. But he DID know a thing or two about the internet and blogging (he himself, had started his own internet company Kibin 4 years prior). He told me that if I blogged about something that I loved to do, eventually, the money would come. But I had to be patient, diligent, and work very hard at it.

He then, sat me down and explained to me how blogging works. It all made sense to the little business person inside of me, but I still wouldn’t be making what I was making in my current job, not even CLOSE. In fact, I probably wouldn’t be making any money for the first year or so, and I had to be OK with that.

We went over my financials, and decided I had enough money saved up after buying our house, that I could live comfortably for 1 year with no income. 1 year, that didn’t seem like enough time to get my new business anywhere close to being where I needed it to be.

So I decided to take a nanny job 3 days a week (I nannied all through high school & college, and LOVE kids, so it was a natural choice for me), and focus on my blog the other 4. This would stretch my runway for another year. I was giving myself 2 years to create my perfect job.

2 years of freedom to pursue my passion, it didn’t seem real! Was I dreaming? Nope, not in the slightest. But I can tell you that once we crunched the numbers, decided on a decisive plan, and realized I could officially resign, a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I was the happiest I’d been in 7 years. Right then, I quit my job.

Nobody really understood, and many thought I was going through a sort of mid-life crisis. Why would I leave such a great job that paid so much? I wasn’t going to be making ANY money. That didn’t make sense to anybody, even to traditional Kaitlin. How could I be so happy, but be so broke at the same time?

Easy, I was going to be doing what I actually ENJOYED doing. They money would come … eventually. And although it may never be as much as I was making at the peak of my sales career, it would be enough to pay the bills (hopefully)! And that was all I really needed.

My Happiness Project: The Meaning of It All

i quit my job

That’s all we ever really need, to cover our expenses. But too often, we focus on the material things in life as necessities and kill ourselves to make that next “commission tier” or whatever it is that will get you more money. When in reality, if we just lived a tad more simply, we would all have the opportunity to be live comfortably happy.

Now, I’m not saying I live on a dirt floor or in BFE. I have a nice house in Northern California, where it’s not cheap to live. I have a nice SUV I drive, and I pay high property taxes. Yes, I could drop it all and get twice the house for half the price somewhere else. I could downgrade my car and save on my car payments and gas. There are so many things I could do to save on my  monthly expenses just to be mentally happy.

And one day, maybe I’ll need to do those things if it comes down to it. But I like the way I live, so I’m not talking about giving up everything you have in order to be happy. No, I’m just talking about making smarter choices. For example, do I REALLY need to spend $300 at Zara just because they’re having a sale? No. Do I REALLY need to go to the trendy new restaurant and drop $150 on a random Friday night just to try it? Probably not. And do I REALLY need that fifth pair of sneakers just because I don’t have a pair of hot pink ones in my closet? I may REALLY want them, but I don’t NEED them.

These are the choices I am talking about. Making smarter, financial decisions day to day so that in the big scheme of things, I don’t need to kill myself to pay my bills. I could live comfortably in the place I want to be, doing the things I love to do.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not advocating people just up and quit their jobs because they don’t like them. I am a HUGE advocate of hard work and persistence. I couldn’t have left my sales job one day sooner than I did. I had put away a nice nest egg in my savings account to use as my crutch while starting my blog. I also had assets in my home. If everything decided to come crashing down on me, I still had my home I could sell if I needed to.

And quite frankly, I had 8 years of sales experience. If blogging didn’t make me happy in the way I thought it would, or if the blog didn’t gain a following in the 2 years I had allotted, I was not opposed to getting another sales job. Hey, whatever it takes!

To date (from December 1, 2014) I have made $101.20. Pennies, really, but it’s the most satisfying $100 I’ve ever made. With much hard work, persistence, and lots of love, I’m getting to pursue my passion. Hopefully, one day, it’ll turn into the dream job I’ve always wanted.

Basically, I’m hoping this post empowers people to pursue happiness. If money makes you happy, great. I love money too. But consider how big this world is, and how many things you can be doing to provide for yourself and your family that will ALSO bring you happiness.

If you’re not truly happy to get out of bed and do what you do everyday, take a step back. Realize that our lives are short, and we must spend every moment cherishing what we have. If you’re not in a position to up and leave, like I did, make a plan for the future. Figure out what it will take to put you in a position that will bring you happiness, and go for it! It’s terrifying, I’m not going to lie, but it’s the best move I’ve ever made.

i quit my job

And if you’re interested in blogging, like me, follow my business updates (published every month, on the 15th of the month, on MissBiziBee.com). My first update, and everything you need to know how I started my site, can be found here. They’ll walk you through my journey, and help you get started on your own blogging path!

Comments

  1. Beth says

    Kaitlin, I saw this post on FB because we have some shared friends. Your story completely resonates with me, and I appreciate your honesty about money, achievement, and risk. I’m on the same path and look forward to being further inspired by your journey!

    • says

      Beth! I LOVE hearing that 🙂 I plan to be totally transparent about my entire blogging adventure, so everyone can see it step by step! I hope it can help you on your path, in some tiny way! Good luck on your journey – and feel free to reach out anytime.

  2. Jody says

    First Congrats on your new path its wonderful! I am so excited for you and proud of you to take that step to do what you love….you inspire me Kaitlin and you’ve got me thinking about what my knack is…Nevertheless, you haven’t been around a lot but I do have a a few things I would love to pic your brain about if your ever in our neck of the woods! Congrats again and to your many new adventures, I know you will be nothing less than amazing!

    • says

      Jody! I miss you! Thank you SO much for your kind words 🙂 You are so wonderful! I actually live RIGHT across the street from Dr. Wells’ office. Would love to grab coffee or lunch one of these days. I still have the same number- text me anytime! xo

  3. says

    Completely relate to this and really proud of you for taking the plunge Kaitlin! Though following my dream still has ways to go, it has already paid off for me in more ways than I could have imagined. Truly wishing the same for you!

  4. Tamara says

    Kaitlin,

    I love your story! I am reinventing myself and transitioning out of medical sales, so this story really was meaningful to me!

    Thanks!

    Tamara

  5. JB says

    Kaitlin,

    Another pharmaceutical rep here ready to get out. I am ready to leave after 18 years. Its scary but I hate myself more every day for staying in pharma. I am a lot older than you and am looking for a complete career change. It will be horribly bad, but I want to save my sanity.

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