Almost daily we find numerous business websites publishing inspirational stories about how one should leave an excruciating, exhausting and demanding job for a fulfilling career, or a dream. But have you ever wondered that is this something actually possible? In the competitive world of today how could one leave a job; how can one peruse dreams? Doesn’t it sound idealistic? Self-devastating?
This article shows stories of famous, successful people, who left their closed-ended, grilling jobs to realize their dreams. The intent is to show you that chasing dreams is not merely limited to the idealistic realm. It is perfectly possible. The first lessons you will get is that chasing dreams is never easy. Sleepless nights, anxiety and pressure, judgments from society never leave you. But the reward is always fulfilling and worthy of all the initial problems.
Jeremy Schifeling: From Kindergarten to Apple
Jeremy Schifeling is the founder of Break into Tech ad currently working at Apple. He started from being a Kindergarten teacher. So how he ended up in Apple? Jeremy always felt that he has a knack for tech. As a teacher, he always hated normal teaching chores, but loved teaching pupils about tech, computers, software and making videos. But he needed something else to pitch himself in front of Apple recruiters. He decided to get an MBA degree. He learned PHP and SQL from home and never gave up. After passing through these tough times, He finally got a call from Apple.
Kat Boogaard: From a corporate job to Freelance Writer
Kat Boogaard is a US based freelance writer who writes from Muse, The Everygirl and Bustle. Years ago, she had a steady and secure full time job. But she never felt fulfilled. She wanted freedom, a work with flexibility. She didn’t like monotonous adminstirative work. When she told her year-long boss that she had finally decided to a leave only for a freelance writing career, he couldn’t believe like so many others. Initial months were difficult. She had only one client. But hardwork and perseverance paid off and today she makes more as compared to what she did in her full time job.
Dave Weiner: From Software Engineer to Bicycle Company CEO
Dave Weiner used to work as a corporate employee in Cole Systems, a software firm. He used to come to the office on his Schwinn bicycle. Weiner loved bicycles since his childhood. One fine day, he resigned, only to start making new, strong and stylish bicycles. The world laughed and announced that Weiner had sounded his career death-knell. Today, Weiner is the CEO of priority bicycles. Since its start, the company has made more than half a million dollars in sales.
Jenni Maier: From Being Laid Off to a Famous Writer
Jenni Maier was fired from her job she loved. For a week she couldn’t get out of her bed because of depression and anxiety. She didn’t eat for days. She felt her life was over. Today, she is a lead writer at Muse and her thoughts are quoted on famous websites like the Washington Post and Medium.
Sometimes we let our jobs define us. We feel the work we are doing is the end of life and there are no vistas beyond this. But a lay-off, a bump, an apparently unfortunate event is always a boon from heaven to shake us off. Jenni used to feel that her job is the only good thing in her life. But when she was laid off, she got a chance to look forward and today she feels that writing for Muse and getting hours of freedom to write books and do personal projects is way better than her previous job.
Uncertainty is the only constant.
Eric Santos: From Decipher Job to CEO
Eric Santos had a dream for selling things and entrepreneurship since his childhood. But the realities of life made him sign up for a Decipher job after graduation. But soon he took a “leap of faith” and left his job to make a total career change. Today, he is the CEO of Benchmark Intelligence, which provides services for data intelligence marketing and insights.