When I knew it was time to leave my job

A year ago I wasn’t waking up to the normal Monday I was so used to. I wasn’t going into work and having to face the dreaded Monday’s that came when I worked in the office. I didn’t have the Sunday scaries like I used to get where it was a day full of anxiety about a week long of not feeling like I was living in fulfillment. Before I go into everything, I will say, I was very fortunate to work where I did. I was given an amazing opportunity full of incredible events, meeting some awesome people in the industry and experiences that I’ll definitely never forget. This position not only taught me about life in the corporate world but taught me so much about myself that I will always take with me.

I moved to Dallas for work right after graduation. At first, it was exciting, new and I still didn’t really know what I wanted to do in life so I was just going through the motions of every day life in the corporate world. Every day was pretty much the same as far as I would wake up, go work out, go to work from 9-5 (sometimes longer & sometimes on weekends) and then come home relax, eat dinner and go to bed. During this time was when I began One Balanced Life on Instagram. I had always seen others sharing their food on Instagram, had the idea in my head, and was like why not try it out?? It was so outside of my comfort zone. It felt weird to me to just share my meals with strangers on the internet. I used this as a little passion project. It brought me so much joy when my work wasn’t.

When I was starting to feel uneasy in my job, I decided it was time to enroll in the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. I needed something to fuel my passion and hopefully take my mind off the work that wasn’t fueling my fire. So I enrolled! I was nervous because it was a lot of money for me to put down with the fear of not really knowing what I would do. But every week, it gave me something to look forward to. Knowing that I can touch someones life through working with me is something that gives me joy, inspires me to only work harder & want to learn more so I can be better for the other person.

I worked in this job for two and a half years before deciding that I needed to leave for my own happiness. And I don’t just mean some days sucked, work days were long, work was slowing down, etc. I mean that I was left every day with an emptiness because I knew I was meant for more. I was having to put in actual work to get through the days. They were filled with a lot of tears, a lot of long phone calls with my mom, anxiety like I’ve never had before, and therapy. Deciding that I needed to talk to someone was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

“I was trying to fill up a cup every day that I couldn’t fill”

I knew it was time to leave when it started to affect other areas of my life. My relationships, my self worth, my health and even my faith. I also knew I wasn’t performing to the best of my ability in this role anymore. I was irritable all the time, I was getting rashes from the amount of stress I was experiencing, I was plagued by not being good enough. I was trying to fill up a cup every day that I couldn’t fill. Every day felt like I was rolling with the motions. A new week began and I was already looking forward to the weekend, you name it. You know you always see the things that say “you don’t want to look back one day and wish you did that” and “life’s too short to do something that you don’t love.” and I felt all of those hard.

There were a lot of things that I had to take into consideration before leaving. I was left in an unknown of how I would make an income until something came through that would be a better suit. I had a rent I had to pay each month, bills, etc. I really had to take a look at my finances to make sure it was something I could sustain for a little bit. I feel fortunate to have people in my life that supported me through all of this transition. In the end, I knew I could do it for a while.

So you may be asking, what did you do after you left? I kept creating on One Balanced Life, I reached out to brands to see if they needed help with their social media, and I kept up with my classes with the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. At that time, I was still wanting to go into something that would be full time, but give me a little more freedom, and all around be something that I enjoyed doing. I was pretty set on finding a brand that I loved, working with them, and then helping them reach goals through their social media & marketing. I knew I had the capability to do that. So, I found a brand that needed full time help so I did it! It was less than what I was making before, it meant a move to a new city, and it meant working from home. I was excited! & I was more excited that I was without work for only a week or two.

Fast forward to me moving to Austin, TX in April of last year and I was working in that role (remote position) for about a month when I was let go. They couldn’t keep me on the team anymore. I was in panic mode. I had just moved to a new city, paying more for rent, now left without a job after just leaving the security of a job. What!? I was left thinking is this what I get for leaving the security I once had…

So then what? I came up with everything that I needed to work in freelancing. I still was working to finish my health coaching certification and I worked to create more for One Balanced Life. I now help other brands with their social media needs, content creation, management, etc. I love being able to use what I had learned to help other brands with theirs. And then also create fun recipes with their products! Every day I get to be creative. And that’s what I love. I work as a health coach and get to help transform others lives through the power of nutrition and lifestyle changes. I am continuing to build this to offer MORE and hopefully reach more. I get to create new recipes to share on One Balanced Life, make something 10 times again, and partner with brands that I truly love. I’ve been able to partner with brands that I never would have ever imagined would be interested in working with me. Just really grateful.

But, I’m still figuring it out. I feel like I always thought I needed to have everything figured out, when the reality is, we are on a constant road of “figuring it out.” And I really love this road. It challenges me, it forces me out of my comfort zone, it creates change in me.

Let me tell you, it’s easy to paint a picture of this being “easy” since leaving the security of having my corporate job. But it hasn’t been. I had months where I was afraid I may not be able to pay all my bills, still had anxiety, and had many times where I thought maybe this just isn’t for me. I’m constantly on this process of working on me. Because if I don’t show up for myself everyday, I won’t be able to accomplish the goals that I have. While all of this change was happening and even when I was afraid I may be cutting it close on my finances one month, I still felt a sense of calmness throughout it all. Like I just had this feeling that everything was going to work out. I was willing to put in the work this time to make it work out. And that’s what I’ve been doing. I’m just really grateful and very excited for what’s to come.

If any of this resonates with you and you want to chat, I’m always open! Feel free to reach out. Lots of love! xx