Moving On

Change is hard. Anyone who has gone through any major life change - a death, divorce, birth, marriage – knows that whether it is expected or a complete surprise, adapting is about the only answer there is.

Leaving a job is also a major life change, and it can be planned for or an unwelcome surprise. But it’s how you move forward that matters.

I have to say from personal experience that there was some relief after leaving a job. Either the atmosphere or management wasn’t my cup of tea. Regardless of the who or the why, my advancement was going to be stifled. And the relief was the realization that I was going to have the opportunity to move on…elsewhere…with a place and people that I believed would want me to succeed and allow me to help them grow their business! After all, isn’t that what all employees do….business development for their organization so it will continue to exist?

But as many are discovering now, companies want much more. They want one person to perform the jobs of three or more people; remote work was fine for a while, but now it’s not; experience translates to “old” which means “expensive;” and the number of people leaving the workforce voluntarily is growing. The younger workers of today advocate work/life balance. I believe that they saw the future and were sending a warning shot that things were going to be different.

There are a lot of people out there seeking work. Look at the true unemployment numbers – close to 25% in June 2025 as reported by the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity (LISEP). It gives one pause to see the actual number, but also, it makes it easier to understand why someone can submit hundreds of resumes and not receive one bite. And businesses know that they have the upper hand.

So what to do with change? Regardless of whether it is planned or thrust upon you, look at it as an opportunity…a way for you to possibly reinvent yourself; try something new; and maybe find out that you are stronger than you think. That’s what I have done. I am stronger than I thought; I left toxic places and even more toxic leadership. I learned new skills, and became healthier, both physically and mentally. Financially, IT WAS HARD!!! But I believe in YOU! People believed in me, and I overcame.  You will, too.  Embrace the change, and turn it into a chance.  Because, sometimes, a chance is all you need.