The Great Resignation

It has been in the headlines a long time – particularly after the pandemic took everything we thought we knew about traditional employment and flipped it on its head.

The Great Resignation, as it has been called, has been a sort of siren song to valuing who you are and what you have to offer, and realizing that if your employer doesn’t see that same value, then you don’t need to give your life to them. This is a simplified explanation, of course, but I’m going to focus on the valuing ourselves part of things, as I think it’s a pretty profound revolution to see happening. The part where people are recognizing the gifts they have to offer, and rightly wanting the efforts to be recognized.

Unfortunately, many people did not voluntarily opt out of their work, but were forced out. This is not what I’m focusing on today, as what intrigues me the most about this voluntary “walk out” is that others who have seen the videos on TikTok of employees leaving their jobs due to unfair wages or lack of respect were using that as motivation to do what they have always been wanting to do. This leaves me with the question for you: what would you do if you could prioritize your happiness and sense of self over your paycheck? In most cases, this is not a reality we can achieve without some planning and perhaps a nest egg or savings to back us in case we don’t get a new job for a while, but I’m asking you on a theoretical level right now. If you could do anything you wanted, and knew you would be rewarded, respected and fulfilled, what would it be? To me, this is what the Great Resignation is asking of all of us. It’s time to rethink how we work. Prioritizing yourself and your happiness is not selfish.

Tell me, have you had an experience where you left your job because you valued yourself more than you were being valued?