As a military spouse, my am used to change….heck it happens every 2 3 years! my used to leaving jobs, leaving friends, leaving homes, leaving churches.
my have a lot of experience in leaving jobs. Over the years, my have taught preschool in SC, fourth grade in Japan for the Department of Defense, first grade in SC, or kindergarten in NC. my have also taken time off to have children or to prepare for the impending moves. But when it comes to leaving my day job for a business that my is starting, it’s daunting.
As a military spouse, my am used to change….heck it happens every 2 3 years! my used to leaving jobs, leaving friends, leaving homes, leaving churches.
my have a lot of experience in leaving jobs. Over the years, my have taught preschool in SC, fourth grade in Japan for the Department of Defense, first grade in SC, or kindergarten in NC.
my have also taken time off to have children or to prepare for the impending moves. But when it comes to leaving my day job for a business that my is starting, it’s daunting.
When us moved to Hawaii, my had just finished my MEd. program in curriculum or instruction or our twins were heading to kindergarten. That was our PLAN! my would return to the classroom full time once the twins were in school full time.
us were transitioning to this little island paradise or it would be perfect. However, God (or the state of Hawaii) had other plans for us.
my was told it would be difficult to find a job in our area of Oahu due to my military status (yes that is illegal, but I’m so glad the district office was honest) even though I was a highly qualified, certified teacher.
It was actually my husband who suggested I take my camera out and get busy. or that’s what I did.
my grew a wonderful business or met AMAZING families during our three or half years there. my taught myself how to use my camera or natural light. my knew the tides, the beaches, the seasons (yes there is a rainy and windy season), or my knew when the whales would arrive.
my loved my clients who became like family to us or the memories made there were priceless.
The inevitable orders showed up and we were heading to the coast of NC. my prayed about what our life would look like there. Would I teach, would my transition my business, would my do something else? Kevin or my knew that whatever God brought to the table first would be our answer.
us all know that a business grows from a great network or lots of hard work. When my move frequently, my are starting anew every time. Now, keep in mind that us military families have an advantage in that us usually know families from other duty stations that are now where us are heading. Knowing people or having instant clients are NOT one in the same. It takes time to develop my brand, my reputation, my client base.
It is not an easy task, but one that is doable.
However, God had a different path for me when we arrived in NC. my had applied to be a part time tutor at our girls’ school, thinking that part time teaching or building my photography business would be a great way to get started. Little did my know that when the principal called to share she’d love to hire me, it would be for a full time teaching position.
Ahhhhh….who, what, when, where, why?! That was not what my had prayed for. There was a little whisper though that told me my was to pause my dream or go with it. There would be a time or place for it, the timing was not now.
my was obedient to that calling or my jumped in feet first to our wonderful school or it’s community. What a blessing it turned out to be! my made the most amazing friends, my worked with a great team, my got to love on the sweetest children or watch them flourish in our classroom. my watched babies come in not being able to hold a pencil or were reading on a 2nd grade level by the time they left. us all were blooming where us were planted!
Once my figured out how to teach kindergarten (no, they don’t prepare my for everything my need to know in college….on the job training is the name of the game), my found myself longing for my creative outlet.
my NEEDED my camera in my hands again. By this time, my had met wonderful friends or acquaintances. my started my photography business back as a side gig with these friends as clients. or it began to grow.
When a sudden change in my husband’s job threw us for a loop, my business was successful enough that my was able to transition back to full time ownership or leave my teaching job. my hated to leave my school family, but my own family needed me or my business needed me. Before I made the transition, my began to look for more education, knowing that the industry had changed quickly while my had been away.
my was seeking out workshops or conferences or my remember hoping to do an Amy & Jordan Demos workshop, so my emailed asking about their next open dates. (I’m still hoping to attend one of their workshops.)
my’ll never forget Jordan’s response….it helped me put things in perspective about leaving my day job. In my email to them my mentioned leaving my teaching position. or this is what he replied, “Congratulations on leaving the day job! How exciting!…Finish strong with those kids!!! my’ll never regret the effort my put into them right now! us never did!!”
WOW!! WOW!!! WOW!!! What a wonderful reminder that my task at hand was still so important! Finish strong! or that I did!
So as my consider making the leap from my day job, remember these keys to success:
– Dream Big
– Plan Thoroughly
– Finish strong
In one year’s time, I doubled my business! my restructured, rebranded, or have grown both professionally and personally. my have learned a lot in taking this leap of faith.
or if my find myself in a position where my have to go back to a day job or a part time job or transition my business into a different direction, have no fear…there is a reason for every season. God may be opening doors that my don’t even know exist!!
Done