If you’re here, it’s pretty safe to assume it’s because you feel like something needs to drastically change in your life.  Most likely, you hate your job.  Very likely, you love to travel.

I feel for you.  I worked a corporate, 9 AM to 5 PM… scratch that… 24/7, never-ending, empty, depressingly draining, life-sucking job (up until a mere 6 months ago).  I was so unhappy that I was actually numb.  I felt as if living through my daily routine was literally eating away at my soul.  Being the upbeat, happy, positive person that I am, I don’t really think anyone knew just exactly how terribly miserable I truly was.  I had the funds to see and do whatever my heart desired, but recreational time, as well as all liveliness and significant life meaning, became former luxuries, long gone.

After five or so long, excruciating years, I decided to finally make the jump off the corporate ladder – without a parachute – somehow landing gracefully, and began to reteach myself how to LIVE versus what I had so quickly grown accustomed to, merely existing.

I know, I know, you’re probably thinking I’m yet another fortunate Millennial who gave up a cushy, six-figure job for some “soul searching” introspection.  Allow me to acquaint myself, please.

I had followed the “rules of life” (pretty much) every step of the way to get to where I was.  I had everything any bureaucratic gerbil was looking for, perfectly crafted on an ivory granite, 32-pound, 75 percent cotton piece of paper.  College, check.  Near perfect grades, check.  Altruistic volunteer activity, check.  Networking skills, double-check.  And the list goes on.  Yet, I had left my once deeply cherished, creative, child-like imagination in the dim and distant past.  My obedient, rational, socially acceptable side dominated my identity leading me to a vicious cycle of ladder climbing and the Herculean task of consistently aiming to achieve the “American Dream”. 

What happens next, and is often a valid story for many of us.  I found myself miserable and perplexed by what the hell I signed up for.  The more money I made, the more stuff I needed.  It was absolutely ludicrous.  After years of living on autopilot, merely tolerating the life I had created for myself, I finally mustered up enough courage to leap off the treadmill to nowhere, which shocked nearly every being in my life.

My plan, or maybe I should say lack thereof was vague.  I didn’t have a clue about what I was going to do.  I had never been so uncertain of anything in my entire life, but one thing I was sure of was I could no longer live how I had been, and what I truly wanted was to travel the world.  I just wanted, more than anything, to be free.  So that’s what I set off to do.

If you are currently hanging onto the ladder of comfort, here are five reasons why you too should let go and join me on the journey to something better:

1. You’re slowly killing yourself at a job you don’t like.  You spend your days in a 4’ x 4’ cubicle, glued to a computer, performing monotonous daily tasks, to run someone else’s idea of a well-oiled corporate machine.  If your days, months, and even years are spent doing mundane work, yet you know there has got to be more to life than this, jump!   

2. You feel handcuffed by student loans.  You’re afraid to try something different because of the time, energy, and money you’ve invested in your education for the “career of your dreams”.  You made an uninformed decision.  You trusted the system, and no one will fault you for what you thought you knew at the time.  You have the ability within yourself to create a happier, more fulfilling future.  If this is the main reason you’re still working a job you despise, jump!

3. You are becoming the average of the five people you don’t ever want to become.  You recognize you are surrounded by frequent negativity and office gossip.  You’re fed up with your daily interactions working with others toward someone else’s goals.  If you realize there’s not a single executive at the top of the ladder that you are aspiring to become, jump!

4. You realize the proverbial corporate ladder has zero guarantees of success or stability.  Completing the work on your desk is only half of your job description.  The other half involves keeping an eye on the world outside your cubicle walls.  It’s managing your career similar to how a business owner manages their business.  The possibility of a colleague playing the game better, or even the risk of being replaced entirely is real.  You can dedicate your life to this ladder, but if you’re under the impression it’s a fair climb, jump!

5. If not now, then when?  There’s uncertainty and instability regardless, but why risk spending your life doing something you don’t want to do in hopes you will someday be capable of buying the freedom to pursue your dreams later?  Today, we have options and there are no right or wrong paths to success.  If you’re craving achievement, but on your own terms, jump!

The next time your boss is irritating or upsetting you, remember, you are choosing this lifestyle.  You’re the one making the decisions regarding your life.  Someone else in your exact situation, with your exact set of circumstances, has changed before.  I understand.  I’ve had terrible jobs and shitty bosses.  I’ve felt that knot in my stomach and unwillingness to drag myself out of bed every morning to continue participating in something I did not believe in.  I have also figured out how to take responsibility for myself and recognize I was the problem, not my situation.  

You can do the same.  You too can walk your own path.  Just remember everything is “figure-out-able”.  And the absolute worst thing you can do is nothing at all.