Quitting a Good Job to Fulfill a Dream Pays Off Every Day

Daily writing prompt

Describe a risk you took that you do not regret.

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My job in IT was being outsourced to another company in 1997, and the company only gave us thirty days’ notice. I was age 46, and I was in college part-time, but I knew that if I were to become the college professor I had dreamed of becoming since I was age nine, this was the moment to put my faith in God to work.

I signed to accept the early retirement, after 23 years working for the local telephone company. My children were all gone from home, and I had only myself. I had spent 28 days in a in-patient mental health facility earlier in the year from anxiety and panic attacks caused by attempting to earn all As in my schoolwork, work 8 to 12 hours a day, and volunteer as a survivor at a domestic violence shelter for women. I knew that something had to change, so I could come off medication. So, I quit my job, despite people telling me that I was crazy to do so, particularly as the company was offering other jobs.

It was a now-or-never moment. I took the payout, paid off my house, and enrolled into college full time to earn my master’s degree in Sociology. I had just earned a Bachelor’s degree after nine years. I received a scholarship that included my tuition and a stipend. I completed the degree in two years, and then enrolled for my doctorate, again earning a scholarship. I started teaching Sociology courses the summer before I started by Ph.D courses. I enjoyed teaching, and I completed it in five years.

I spent nearly twenty years teaching college students Sociology, and I loved it. Today, the world needs the lessons that I taught my students about race, gender, and family and marriage. I don’t regret making the decision to go from earning nearly $70000 a year to earning $18000 a year as a graduate student. I didn’t miss paying a bill. The Lord provided for me. When I was told that I would never at age 54 with a new degree find a job, I told people that I trusted God’s plan for my life. I learned to never let other people decide your destiny. Instead, when you are called crazy or insane, tell them, “I hope I am never sane again!” Keep moving forward always. I have peace in my life knowing that I have no regrets. I don’t look back and say, “What if?” I did it.