10 Tell Tale Signs You Are Ready to Leave the Rat Race
Have you had enough of the nine-to-five (or should they call it the seven-to-seven?), the pointless rounds of meetings, and wondering if this is what life's really about? Then here are ten tell-tale signs that it's almost certainly time to make a break, escape the rat race and do something better.
Test yourself and see how many of them apply to you.
Sign No. 1You've simply stopped enjoying your job. What better reason is there to make the break and look for new ways to pay the bills? New and exciting opportunities are all around you, so there's never been a better time to make the move.
Sign No. 2You are totally demotivated. Hacking your way through next month's financial projections may once have got your juices going, but not any more. You've reached a point of no return and giving yourself pep talks about 'hanging on in there' and 'waiting for things to get better', just don't cut it anymore.
Sign No. 3The daily commute really has become a daily grind. When just getting to and from work is adding two, three or even more hours to your day, with jams, road works and rising fuel prices all set to make things worse, it's time to start working in a different way.
Sign No. 4You're not feeling fighting fit. It may just be constant tiredness or it could be something more. Whichever, you never seem to have the energy you need for your work, for yourself or for your family and now you feel ten years older than you actually are!
Sign No. 5You're starting to 'overdo' it. Social drinks have turned into something more and a drink after work isn't just to help you relax, but has become a way to hide all the frustration and dissatisfactions with the working day. You are slipping onto a dangerous road ... and you know it.
Sign No. 6There's never any time for you. All your time seems to be spent jumping through hoops that others are holding. Deadlines that had to be met yesterday now should have been met the day before. You are exhausted, burnout without even being aware of it.
Sign No. 7You're started to feel afraid. To worry about losing your job or concerned that you can't hack it any more and soon someone will find you out.
Sign No. 8You've begun to react to things that shouldn't wind you up. The guy in the office next door, or the idiot that cuts you up on the road. All sure signs that you're under stress and out of balance with what you truly want and desire.
Sign No. 9 You can feel the space between you and your partner getting wider and the barriers between you and your kids getting higher. And there's never enough time at home to repair the damage because you're working at weekends too. You know you shouldn't blame others for feeling resentful, but what has to be done, has to be done.
Sign No. 10You know you're good, but the opportunities seem to keep going to others. You're being passed over, again and again. You know you've got skills and experience, plenty of ideas, and with the right motivation you know you could get somewhere.
Of course, you don't need someone to tell you all this when you know it already - whether right now it's buried deep down or already bubbling to the surface. And you don't need someone to give you permission to swap what you've got for something you'd enjoy more.
What you do need is a catalyst to help you do something about it.
So, wherever you are in the corporate world, at whatever level, you can still make the change - and be happy. It's up to you to stop deluding yourself, things will not get any better until you take the action to make them better! And the best day to do that is today, right now.
If you are unhappy with where you are, then take the time to find out how you can make the first move towards having a different life, a better life, one where you are in control of what you do and when you do it.
Don't you owe it to yourself to at least explore the opportunities that are out there and open to you?
Start by downloading two free chapters of 'Corporate Escape: the Rise of the New Entrepreneur' here. Or join our specialist newsletter. http://maitebaron.com/the-escape-corporate-succeed-beyond-newsletter/.