“I’ve been in corporate America for 15 years now, and I was already scheming my exit plan for a dream career as a mid-size fashion influencer/blogger with my own line of merch, but the pandemic has only confirmed that the typical Zoom-conference-call-packed 9-5 isn’t for me. The issue is that living in a big city has pretty much drained my resources, so it feels fiscally irresponsible to just up and quit right now. However, I’m 35, and I feel like I don’t have that much time to make it happen if I don’t give it a shot now. What do you think? Should I quit to follow my passion 110%? Or, work nights and weekends over the next few years until I have more of an emergency fund saved? Will I end up never doing it if I don’t just dive in? Or, frankly is it a pipe dream to try to make it in an already crowded field with fierce competition, and should I be counting my blessings that I even have a job in the pandemic? “—Meagan, 35, Nutley, NJ Luvvie: I don’t think quitting immediately is blanket advice anybody should give. I’m never the person that’s like, “Oh my God, just take a blind leap of faith and something great will happen from it.” No, life is realistic. We have bills to pay. We’re adults, we want to feed ourselves and sometimes other people. I think it’s important to come up with plans. If you know you want something, you can come up with a plan that allows you to save money from your salary. For example, over six months, then maybe you quit. I think it’s important for us to pursue our dreams and still be realistic about the fact that we do have things to handle. Know your end game. Come up with a deadline for yourself. Plan towards it, and save your money so when you take a leap of faith you’re not doing it with an empty bank account because it’s tough. You know creating, freelancing, and building a business oftentimes the first year is not profitable. Take the time to create a budget that you can now follow that will allow you to leave when you decide to step away and pursue things 110%. Is it a pipe dream in an over-saturated market? Not necessarily. I think saturated markets are not the only indication of your chance of success. It’s like if you go to the water aisle, there’s how many companies and brands of water. Go to the bread aisle, same thing. It’s not necessarily about the saturation, but you got to step into the space and stand out in some way. Be authentic. Your perspective is what’s going to have people connect with you. I don’t think it’s a pipe dream. I do think that it takes you being super intentional, being authentic, and having great visual and storytelling branding. All of that, but it’s possible. It’s definitely possible. Should you be grateful to have a job in the pandemic? Sure, you know, but I don’t think those two are related at all. I think two or more things can be true at once. You can absolutely have gratitude for the job you have right now. While also thinking about this dream that you have, I think that’s healthy. And I think it’s fair. You can be like, “yes, I’m so thankful for this job and paying my bills.” While you’re also saying, “you know, I want to pursue this influencer dream.” I also don’t think your age should stop you. There’s nothing wrong with being 35 and wanting to pivot. Being 35 is not, “oh, my God, my life is over.” You are fine. There’s nothing wrong with being in your mid-30s and realizing you want something different. I think there’s power in that. You have 15 years of corporate experience. That’s amazing! It’s not something to be ashamed of. It’s something to be proud of. That is something that makes you different. I think it’s powerful and lean into it. I think a lot of these questions that you have are for you to answer for yourself, and hopefully, you see there are no wrong answers. No one can tell you what to do. You’re going to have to kind of double down on yourself. Next up, check out Special Place For Women author Laura Hankin’s advice for dealing with a case of the green-eyed monster.
