Why I quit my office job

At 19, I set foot into the corporate world. Fifteen years on, I was ticking all my 'career goals'. But something didn't sit right.

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For over a decade, I dreamed about having my own business of some sort. Perhaps I'd sell arts and crafts. Or become a wedding supplier. Or even run a bed-and-breakfast. Whatever the flavour, it always seemed to revolve around creating something that I could give back to others to enrich their lives.

The reality was starkly different. At 19, I landed my first corporate job in insurance. A three-year career in IT followed suit, along with eight years in property after that.

Every year I worked, I pushed myself hard, proving to myself and my managers that I was worth more than my paycheck. My humble starting salary of $25,000 jumped each time I climbed the corporate ladder. Soon enough, I was close to hitting six figures — something I was insistent on achieving in my lifetime.

But for all the money I was pocketing, I was losing out. The more I earned, the more responsibilities I took on, and the harder I slogged myself. After an extended stint of working long hours without adequate rest, I finally burned out, and my health never quite recovered. I was taking sick leave almost once a month, and each time, it would be a different illness.

It was during one of my days off that something triggered.

I was very fortunate to be living by the beach, and so, armed with a pocketful of tissues, I trekked down there to get some fresh air and sun, and hopefully unclog my nose in the process. Plonking myself on a grassy hill, I took in the surroundings. (And a photo.)

Being a weekday, there was hardly anyone around except for some volleyballers and a sprinkling of sunbathers. The beach is normally bustling with people, so the rare opportunity to enjoy it peacefully was divine.

I giggled to myself internally. Man, I should really take more sick days.

And then it hit me. Why did I have to be sick in order to enjoy this? Why couldn't I just do this all the time?

It suddenly struck me as odd that in the best part of the day, when one could be down here soaking up the weather, I would ordinarily be sitting in a skyscraper. And not just me — pretty much everyone doing the regular nine-to-five. We all get up and go to work with the sun barely up, and by the time we leave the workplace, it's dark. Since when did this become the accepted norm, and why don't we question it?

We once lived in a simple world. In a community of bakers, blacksmiths, chimney sweeps and carpenters, everyone had a pivotal role to play in keeping the town thriving. Instead of using money, people bartered, exchanging goods or services for others. Then, along came the Industrial Revolution, and mass production was born. Small towns turned into large cities, and our agrarian society eventually morphed into the urbanised one as we know it today.

​It's been 250 years since the beginning of the revolution. Yet we're still locked into cubicles, churning out fragments of work on a production line. The only difference is that the factory sits 20 storeys higher and the view is prettier.

Whilst I don't speak for everyone, the majority of people I know aren't happy in their jobs. People don't seem to feel the same gratitude or fulfilment from work like the previous generations did. If anything, it's resented. 'I hate my job' is a common conversation topic.

While revelling in my newfound window of freedom and Vitamin D, I started to think deeply about my own lifestyle. ​My long-time salary goal was now in clear sight, but at what cost? I wasn't any happier for it. Instead, I was dispassionate, unmotivated and tired. And snotty.

​The 'more money = better life' formula didn’t really seem to add up anymore. So, if earnings were irrelevant, what would I do for a living?

Determined to do something that was driven by passion rather than money, and flexible enough to allow me to live more healthily, my quest for the ideal job began. Turning a dream into reality wasn't going to happen overnight, though. Indeed, it took many soul-searching sessions, sanity checks with close ones, and a whole lot of fear and self-doubt.

I handed in my resignation letter and hung up my corporate boots. As much as I loved the people I worked with, it was time to move on. True to my word, I've set out to do what I wanted to do 15 years ago.

I'm now the proud founder and owner of my very own creative business as a freelance proofreader, copyeditor and copywriter.

​It's a handful of hats to wear, but I love each and every job I do. I'm helping people find their voice and assisting those who lack the time, resources, skill or confidence to take the next step in their career or project. My motivation to work is no longer driven by a paycheck — it's the sheer joy of being able to share my skills in a way that frees people to do the same with their own skills.

Admittedly, I've yet to allow myself any downtime, and I'm working longer hours. I'm also taking a huge pay cut. But considering my travel commute is five metres, I don't change out of my pyjamas, and I get to work on cool jobs? Totally worth it.

So if you also dream of doing something you've always wanted to do, I encourage you to find the confidence to turn that nugget into gold. When you love what you do, it doesn't even feel like work.

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Stella Logan is a freelance content writer who unplugged from the Matrix and hopes to inspire others to do the same.