“Most people are not really free. They are confined by the niche in the world that they carve out for themselves. They limit themselves to fewer possibilities by the narrowness of their vision.” -V.S. Naipaul
Why do we stay in bad situations? If you’re feeling disgusted, angry or frustrated, then you know what I’m saying.
Or maybe it hasn’t gotten that far yet. Perhaps you’re just tired, bored and feeling like you could be doing something else with your life.
I’ve been there plenty of times. There’s a point where you know you’re not happy, but you keep going through the motions because it’s easier than calling it quits.
We stay long past the time when we should have left, then we end up rationalizing why we’re staying. If we want to move on, we have to prepare for it.
In my last corporate job I procrastinated about making a career transition. My new career was not going to just show up at my house and knock on the door. I had to at least meet it halfway.
Instead I tried to talk myself into staying where was, because after all, it wasn’t that bad. I was getting paid. So what if the environment was negative and I felt stifled, was it really going to be different somewhere else?
Sometimes we procrastinate because we aren’t ready to make a change. Even though I disliked by job, it was familiar. It’s strange how we can be unhappy with a situation and yet comfortable with it at the same time.
Although it’s human nature to wait until we’re forced to take action, it’s not the best course to take. I’ve done that enough to know that in the end, it’s not worth it.
What I’ve learned (finally) is that it’s better to move towards something than to be running away from something. When you know when to leave, you get to decide where you are going.
Copyright © 2010 – 2014 Deborah A. Bailey
Excerpted from “Think Like an Entrepreneur: Transforming Your Career and Taking Charge of Your Life”