What do you do when you want to quit your job, but you’re not sure if you can afford to. This is a tough situation that a lot of Americans are dealing with. So much so that they’re now calling it the great resignation. With over 50% of workers claiming to feel burned out, two-thirds say that it’s only gotten worst due to the pandemic. Pushing over 40% of workers to look for other employment with more flexibility and higher pay. But what do we do if we want to quit but don’t have enough money to pay the bills?
List it Out
Now as someone who’s been burned out a number of times. I know that when you’re in it, how it can feel like it’s never going to end. To not break down, even more, I literally paused everything and took a step back to breathe. Once I gathered myself, I started listing out what was working and what wasn’t working on a piece of paper. For me, it always helps to just write it out, and get everything off my chest. Because sometimes we can overly focus on the 20% that’s missing and ignore the 80% that’s working.
Play Devil’s Advocate
Before you make a spontaneous decision to quit your job. Let’s play devil’s advocate and list out some of your options.
Option 1: Talk to your employer
One, you can talk to your boss about this situation and about how you’re feeling.
Because you know what they say, “closed mouths don’t get fed.” You don’t know if there is a solution for your burnout, extend timelines, and even negotiate a pay raise.
Option 2: Get a new job before you quit your current job
Another option is to not quit your job until you have another one lined up. If you’re not changing industries, then you want to start applying for jobs now. Because most of the time when people quit their job it’s because they already have a new job or another source of income that they can rely on.
Option 3. Can you live off your savings?
Now if you’ve made up your mind quitting is what you have your heart set on. You’re going to have to sit down and do the math to see how far your savings can stretch. You can do this by adding up all of your mandatory needs and comparing them to your savings.
Your mandatory needs are going to include:
- Housing,
- Utilities,
- Transportation,
- Minimum debt repayments
- Food
- And healthcare costs, if your job, offered you healthcare.
This is going to tell you how much wiggle room you have financially before you need to get some income into the household.
Closing Thoughts
There is a reason why financial professionals recommend having 3-6 months of expenses saved as an emergency fund. It usually takes people between 2-6 months to find a new job. So if you’re considering quitting your job and don’t have an emergency fund saved up. You may want to consider looking for a new job before putting in your 2-week notice. This way you can have a new source of income to help you cover your needs without missing a beat.
Additional Resources
- 60 Minutes – The Great Resignation
- Great Opportunity for a Career Rebot
- Purposeful Leadership Needed
