"Quitting Corp" is a mindset shift

A challenge for change

Hello and welcome to Quitting Corp!

Do you remember that feeling when you started a new job? Everything was new and exciting, anything was possible, and you were allowed to make mistakes for the sake of learning. 

And then, remember how that feeling almost imperceptibly shifted from loving the constant whirlwind, enjoying drinking from the firehose of new stuff, and taking crazy risks that sometimes paid off big time to valuing stability, structure and processes?

If yes, “Quitting Corp” is for you.

Quitting Corp is not here to encourage you to abandon your stable corporate job— well, not necessarily!

It’s definitely not about doing something dramatic, like walking out mid-day and shouting, ‘I quit!’ It’s just a little, tiny nudge toward work that aligns with your intentions, aspirations, and ambitions.

Each post should plant a seed so that you can think about whatever powers you forward and make you give your very best to whatever you are working on. Work that makes time fly! Work that doesn’t dull and bore you.

There is also no predetermined outcome or timeline for change outside your control.

Because, you see, “corp” is just a mindset. In the organization where I currently work, we have banned “corp speak,” a.k.a. the use of important-sounding jargon with very little meaning.

“Quitting Corp is a game-changer that will disrupt the paradigm and give you a competitive advantage.” :) …. is an example of corp speak.

The “corp career” mindset takes over when work becomes as meaningless as that sentence.

Quitting that mindset can be huge! And no one can do it for you: not your parents, your partner, and definitely not your manager.

The Quitting Corp maxims which I may often repeat

• First, you'll do your best work when you engage in something you love. Sometimes, we are lucky enough to be assigned work that we love. More often, we have to grab it or create it.

• Second: Never stop exploring your interests. Be relentless about it. Learn to recognize what resonates with you and what doesn’t. Think of it as trying new foods: you’ll tolerate some and love others. And some may always make you gag.

• Third, financial stability is an excellent reason to stick with your job. I know many people who 100% need the job they have because they are breadwinners for their families or are working towards a financial goal that will allow them to retire well. Trust me: there are ways to find better, more exciting work wherever you happen to be working.

Who am I and what do I know about any of this?

Fair question!

As of this writing, I am about to quit corp: after 12 years at Google, I am leaving what has become a lovely comfort zone and heading straight back into the discomfort of doing something new. 

To start, I'm going back to my first love: writing, reporting, telling stories about change and transition, what got us here, and regular updates on how it’s going for me.

My own challenge for change is to create content strong enough to move someone to give me their time to read what I write. Writing is the hardest thing I want to do well.

It feels great to be uncomfortable again.

This is where you do the work.

Designing a work life you love takes effort. Making time to think, generate ideas, practice something new, imagine different possibilities, and then poke holes into all of it to return to the experimentation table is the most crucial part of self-discovery.

When it makes sense, posts will end with a [K]Now You prompt: an invitation to reflect and join the conversation we must have to end this lingering season of quiet discontent. There is so much that we can’t control, so it's time to double down on the impact each of us can have.

Let’s do this.

Next time, I will tell you how I came to this project. See you soon!