According to statistics, every 6
seconds someone quits their job. It has taken me 17 years,
1 month, 1 week, and 6 days to become part of that statistic,
but I really am finally doing it.
I'm quitting CVS.
I'm sure some people think it's no big deal, but it is for
me. This is the only job I've ever had. I don't
really know anything else. Plus, I'm quitting my job and
not getting another one; I'm tossing away a good salary, health
benefits, stock options, 4 weeks of vacation a year, and the
ability to work/not work whenever I please. And for
what? For a chance to be a writer. That's it.
Just the chance.
But I figure it like this: I've
always said that if I had enough money so that I could not work
for 1 year, I would quit my job and spend that year trying to
write for a living. Well, with my re-financing and a
little bit of savings, I may be able to do it for 2 1/2
years. That's a big window of opportunity.
Financially, the time is now. On a personal level, I'm
single (in a matter of speaking) and I don't have any kids yet,
so this may be my last chance to do something like this.
In 5 or 10 years from now, I'm sure I'll have a couple of
ankle-biters running around and I'll need to have a steady
income. And finally--and most importantly--ever since I
graduated from college in 1990, I've wanted to be a
writer. It didn't pan out back then, but obviously the
dream has stuck with me. I've got to give a shot.
I may fail, but I'll have at least tried.
Yesterday was the big day when I told
my boss and my management staff that April 25th will be my last
day. Yeah, it was a scary thing to do. I was pretty
nervous. My boss took it pretty well and said that he
wasn't shocked because nothing shocks him in the CVS world
anymore. And I think he was supportive and I think he
understood, although he didn't want to lose me. As for my
management staff, well, they were definitely shocked. I
don't think it's sunk in with them yet. I called them all
into the office for a quick meeting and broke the news. It
was kind of jaw-dropping for them. And, of course, after
all the Why's and How Come's and What Are You Going To Do's,
they wanted to know who was going to be the new manager.
They'll be fine.
And so the countdown to the Great Unknown
has started. Am I going to make it as a writer? I don't
know, but I do know this: I'm looking forward to a December
without retail.
