Quit Your Retail Job, The Pay Sucks Anyway

Retail sucks.

Yeah, I've been there and I'm sure you've heard those two words next to each other plenty of times before. You may actually work in retail yourself so I might actually be pissing you off a little bit inside because

you're the one 

having to endure 

the hell that is retail. 

But don't worry. It's all going to be over soon. Just kidding it might not be,but have you ever stopped and asked yourself why it is that you are having to actually work a job that you otherwise wouldn't? If you think I'm about to delve into the spectrum of "stay in school" and "follow the rules and you'll make it to the top", that's not at all what this post is about. Actually, it's about the complete opposite. Okay actually the stay in school part will actually benefit you, but the others won't.

Here's the deal.

School is important for two types of people in this world:

1. Those who wish to obtain an education in hopes that one day a fancy printed design on a paper will make them a lot of money.
2. Those who believe an education is important and see the value of an education much higher than the power of the dollar.

People who follow the rules get one of two outcomes in their lives:

1. They follow the rules so well that they expect a perfect life in which everything will always go as planned and in which people that choose to not follow the rules will never live a good, comfortable life.
2. They realize that in the end, if they would have taken a risk somewhere down the path of their life, they could have done things much more differently. This doesn't necessarily have to be in a negative point of view.

So what the heck are you trying to get at, Juan?

Stop being afraid of taking risks in your life. Now, I'm not the biggest risk taker in the world, but over the past 4 years I've taken very random and often dumb risks that have actually shaped my life for the better. 

I woke up one morning

and decided that 

I hated my retail job.

So, what did I do? I went into work and at about the five hour mark I got on the computer and typed up, what I will proclaim, as the most badass one day notice ever written. Keep in mind that I am the type of person to follow policies and procedures to the T and I'm not generally a superior you'd want to work for... but that all changed when I wrote that notice.

I'll be honest, I'm money hungry, but I had had enough of retail hell.

In 2011, when I was first able to start working, I started at a modest retail hourly rate of $8.20, got fired and then worked a couple of months after at my next retail location starting at $7.85. Within 3 years I was making $30k in a new management role, the next year after that I was bringing in $45k. That $45k that I was making at 22 years old was coming from that lousy, unorganized retail position that I ended up leaving in the most unexpected way.

"Why are you stating how much you make, it just sounds like you're trying to show off..."

I'm showing you what I was making to place the emphasis on the hurdle of money. Money, while it can give you almost everything in the world, will eventually make you work for it instead of it working for you. Money sucks. Money lies. Money cheats. Money gets the best of you and money acts like your friend. Your life does not revolve around money, it revolves around your will and endurance and the perseverance you have to life your life the way you want to. Drop out, start a band, run away. Do it all because you want to, not because money tells you to.

So, screw money in my situation right? It's not like I had just moved out to an apartment, was paying off a car along with other bills, and finally living on my own like a big boy... except I was. That's where the "leap" I mentioned before comes into play.

I quit a job I was making pretty decent money in and pretty much had to say goodbye to the life I had just embarked on. I was jobless for a good month. I broke my lease, said goodbye to the semi adult life, and moved back in with my parents.

Because 

if you're going to work 

feeling sorry for yourself, 

you aren't really working, 

you're struggling to work.

That's what I was doing: struggling. Not struggling as in I don't have food to eat or money to drink (I'm leaving that typo there because I meant to say water, but instead said money and it just plays so well into the point I'm trying to get across), but struggling to realize that I was letting money control my life. I was letting money play the role of parents when my parents were doing everything they could to give me a better, more fulfilling life.

The fact that I quit that job the way I did tore me apart. I was thinking, "This isn't like you, but this job is making you miserable." It turns out because I quit my job I was able to take an internship in what I really wanted to do with my life: code. Three months later I am making more money that I ever dreamed I'd make at the age of 23, but that will be another post for another day because I got to that figure by doing some key things that others are afraid to do.

Don't struggle to realize that you could be doing bigger and better things just because the money is not there.

Why You'll Never Land Your Dream Job

There's not enough time in the day to do everything you want to.

We've all used that excuse before. It's a bold excuse and it's the same excuse that keeps you from waking up extra early to go work out or get some chores done around your home. So, why do we give in to the notion that work, family,  or school is holding us back from our "picture" of reality?

Because we are not having enough fun.

You're definition of fun compared to everyone else will undoubtedly be different, but at the end of the day it all comes down to our very own quality of life. Working that dreadful job of yours isn't making anything better, but at the same time you're probably not in a good spot to just quit that job and become a distinguished rapper, a notorious artist, or go find the cure for cancer. Success doesn't come in one day. The betterment of your well being from an emotional state, can. So, let's take a look at why you actually can and should quit your job. Because, come on, you know you want to.

1. You're too bright for your position

Ever feel as though the people you work with and the environment that you're in seem pretty dull or uninteresting to you?

It could simply be because you're just too damn smart for what your job requires of you. Seriously. The next time you go into work try changing things up a bit by examining the way others work and what you do differently just to realize that your level of thinking is beyond the nature of your job requirements.

2. You feel too comfortable where you are

If there's one thing that will hold you back it's the fact that you've been at your job so long that you are simply okay with working an unfullfilling job with mediocre pay.

If you want success, go get it. Don't wait around for "the right connections " or the right people to come into your life.

Do something you've always wanted to do, take a leap of faith and delve into your own passions for once.

3. You don't have the money

If your dream job means moving to another city or country just to fulfill your dreams, why can't you accomplish them where you are now? Money? No way.

See, money is an object and it will either ruin you or you will ruin it. Take a step back and analyze your options and the path that leads to your dream job. Find the quickest most beneficial route for you and if it means giving up your savings once, why not?

Money comes and goes,  but your happiness shouldn't.