What happens after you quit the job that’s draining you??

Reflecting on a recently completed coaching journey, I’ve realized how much I value this practice of active reflection — not just on the growth I witness in the thinker (yes, I don't call them clients), but also the growth it creates in me.

A few months ago, I was approached by a young woman (late 20s is pretty young in my mind!) who wanted support in quitting her job. After our chemistry meeting, I honestly wondered why she needed a coach to quit a damn job. How hard could it be, right? She was clear that she wanted to work with me, but I wasn’t entirely sure how I could help her “just quit.” Still, I decided to work with her — it was definitely a first for me.

About two months into the coaching journey, she quit. Just like that. I wasn’t sure what exactly catalyzed it, but she did it. And that’s when the real coaching started. I watched her move through something that looked a lot like withdrawal — not knowing what to do with her days, questioning her self-worth, feeling untethered. I was surprised. Someone who waited so long for this moment, who chose a coach to help her get here, was suddenly not fully prepared for what came after.

The real growth began when she slowly found her footing and started sharing how terrifying it had been to make the decision in the first place. She told me she had always believed she wouldn’t be able to face society without a high-paying job. That she would be looked down upon. And so she stayed — for five long years — in a job that made her feel small, demanded 50-hour workweeks, and drained her every single day.

I felt knots in my stomach as she spoke. It reminded me of the time I was stuck in a job that didn’t feel aligned, the self-doubt I carried before taking a plunge into what I truly wanted: making workplaces better, empowering others, helping people grow. That conversation reminded me — it’s not just her or me. This is the story of so many women. Women who may or may not have support. Women conditioned to tie their self-worth to a paycheck. Women made to feel that their other contributions don’t count. Women afraid that being a stay-at-home mom would make them “less than.”

I wish I could whisper this to every woman sitting in a maddening corporate job wondering what she’s doing with her life:
"Go for what you want. Be your own cheerleader. Live life on your terms."

As for my thinker — she is now a part-time barista (at a friend’s café), an artist (yes, she does scrimshaw art — wild, right?), and a full-time MSW student.

She is not the same person anymore. She’s no longer embarrassed to tell people she works shifts at a café. She’s proud of her pivot from tech to social work. And honestly, after walking alongside her, I’m not the same person anymore either. I believe even more deeply in my purpose, in my work, in the women around me, and in the power of purposeful pivots!

Purposefully yours,

Richa