3 Keys to making smart decisions when you’re putting it all on the line.
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Everyone knows someone stuck in a job they hate, because the pay is good, its easy and secure, or they’re just too lazy to quit. Risks are necessary for success, if you don’t take risks, then nothing changes. But there are ways to take risks without gambling everything.
Having quit my job, sold my business, moved to Cambodia, and being in the process of changing careers, I think there are three things that are key to making a smart decision.
Have a Plan B
Let’s face it, quitting your job scares the s**t out of everyone. It’s hard to give up a steady paycheck and a comfortable job. The biggest thing that helped me take the plunge was having a solid backup plan. I’m lucky enough to have a skilled qualification in an industry that has a relatively high chance of employment.
However, there are other ways to have a back up plan. A friend of mine recently asked his employer to grant leave without pay, while he went and worked for another organization. My business partner works part-time for an Australian organization remotely, which enables her to live in Cambodia and work on our start-up, whilst still having an income. All these two people had to do was ask!
There is always a way, but having a solid Plan B, takes a substantial amount of the risk away.
Research
Before the move, we did 18 months of research on our project. We had a preconceived idea of what we wanted to do, and this changed dramatically through our research. We conducted interviews with everyone from the private sector, the public sector, the not-for-profit sector, and potential customers. We researched what the business environment was like, cost of living and any potential difficulties we may have. Without this research we would have failed before we started. If you’re planning on leaving your job, you need to know back to front whatever it is you’re going to do.
Compare Positive and Negatives Equally
In his book Thinking Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman writes about our bias towards avoiding losses. We would much rather avoid losing one dollar than gaining one dollar, even though the net change is the same. Our mindset is always weighted towards avoiding negative outcomes rather than gaining positive ones. We need to acknowledge this, because it’s a key reason why it’s so easy to stay in a dead-end job.
Finally, ask yourself this question:
“In 20 years will I regret this more if I do it and fail, or if I never try?
The answer for me was obvious.
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Photo: Flickr/Zdenko Zivkovic
