Leave the corporate job

[Oligodoodle]

Has anyone left a well paid corporate job following a life-changing experience or for less stress?

What do you do now? Do you regret your decision?

Thanks.

No sorry, still in mine. Watching

Am seriously considering it. Did it before, 25 years ago, and it all worked out fine. But corporate life crept back up on me and now I'm totally burnt out again. Pronoun-mania is the last straw.

But my bills are a lot higher than they were back then. Dare I jump? Will the fabled net appear?

No high-earning partner to cushion the fall.

My dh did this. He took voluntary redundancy (he asked for it), from a 100k director job, took some of his payout and took his hgv class 1 licence, and has been driving a truck for the past 6 years - and absolutely loves it. He works long hours but when he's home, he's home. Honestly, he's like a different man, he's happy, funny, attentive all the things he was when we met. He's earning a lot less, but tbh, I don't mind. We'd be sat on the beach on a fancy holiday and he's be on his phone working. Now he never takes his phone anywhere, out holidays are less flash but far more fun

I did. I started volunteering for a youth organisation and when they had an opening I took it! I earn far far less so have had to make financial sacrifices but it’s been worth it.

I spent many years in a very well paid corporate job. Then Covid hit and the company announced they had to make around a few hundred redundancies. As I'd been there so long, and I was at a life stage where I'd had my children and they were grown, I felt in a position to take voluntary redundancy. I got a good pay off and spent several months out of work before deciding I needed to get back on the gravy train. I am now a funeral arranger, earning around a third of my previous salary, but it's the most rewarding job I've ever done. I've no regrets leaving the corporate world, although I do miss the salary sometimes.

You need to plan it. It's possible but the transition can be painful. Corporates have stresses but so does working in smaller companies. However I think when you're done with Corporate life it's hard to continue.

How old are you? Some people hang on for pension reasons and when I was younger I couldn't understand it but as you age it does seem more understandable.

I did around 10 years ago. I'd built up around 500k in investments beforehand though so had a safety net. I moved into community work which paid a quarter of my previous salary but I cut my cloth and generally enjoyed life and still do. I draw down occasionally when I want to treat myself but most of the time I live within my income.

My DH is planning to do this in a few months. I am sure we will have less money but we should have enough for what we need. Hopefully a lot less stress for him. Things have happened to friends lately and it’s really made us think about what’s really important.

I'm not in a massively well paid corporate job, but I am in a very high stress job and I have resigned. I'm lucky in that I have considerable savings. I'm taking 6 months out to review and then moving into something that is more compatible with having a life.

So far every day that passes affirms that this has been the right decision, the job is unsustainable. And there are others in my organisation who feel the same way. This is NHS non-clinical and it's hell right now.

Currently trying and over the moon even if pay is lower and 'stresses' will be different. The current environment i am in is unbelievably drainingly-dull!

@pointythings

I'm not in a massively well paid corporate job, but I am in a very high stress job and I have resigned. I'm lucky in that I have considerable savings. I'm taking 6 months out to review and then moving into something that is more compatible with having a life.

So far every day that passes affirms that this has been the right decision, the job is unsustainable. And there are others in my organisation who feel the same way. This is NHS non-clinical and it's hell right now.

Mine was a clinical NHS post and it was bad enough when I got out 10 years ago. I think both clinical and managerial posts in the NHS today are really high stress roles with little job satisfaction. Well done for getting out. Six months off is a good idea. I had 9 months off and enjoyed every minute of it!

@Jonny1265 I found out today that someone else in my team is also leaving. And more widely I know of several more who are looking to get out. The NHS needs to look long and hard at the way it's burning people up. Since Agenda for Change it's all about piling on more and more stress and responsibility for less and less pay.

I also took a lower paid, lower stress job. Best thing I ever did. In my case regarding salary I simply cut my cloth accordingly. But I'm lucky in that I can do that. I'm now even looking at going down to 4 days a week. There's so much more to life than stress that comes with a high level corp job. It's not worth the money imo

Took 25k reduction for work life balance 9-5 no weekends no 80+ hr weeks no 20 odd days on trot

I am at the point of deciding whether to leave a corporate job. There is no option to work part time.

I have savings & I've paid into a company pensions

I'm looking at doing something completely different, perhaps part time

At the moment I am hanging on until the end of this year & may be a bit longer

I've worked in other industries, so I know that I can do other types of work

It's the big leap, that I'm a bit wary of !

Hello all, is anyone around from this thread who has a success story of leaving and starting afresh! I hope so and would love to hear of any positive stories!