J-O-B Quitter
Feb

This is a guest submission from Dion Baker from wombapparel.com.
Hello, my name is Dion Baker and I’m a job quitter.
That’s right. There is no shame in my quitting game. Admittedly, quitting a job is a simple process and, by itself, is not such a remarkable feat to accomplish. Just tell your “boss” you’re going to quit and leave, give them a date, and voila.
Not much to it. But the part that does makes it remarkable is the story and accompanying reasons for quitting the job. Those details create the vibrancy that makes the image of quitting so vivid. With that said, the following will be my literary artistic rendering of a why I quit. The first thing to address is…
What Type Of Job Was I Doing?
I was working for the US Department of Defense performing weapons systems logistics and program management assignments. In layman’s terms, I coordinated the transport of weapons systems from point A to point B for our military and for international armies. All of this was under the guise of US geopolitics.
I did that for 5 years and, from day one, knew that it was not in accord with who I was. Morally and ethically, I never felt 100% comfortable with it. Pushing weapons systems around the world just didn’t resonate with me. But, I proceeded to prostitute my morality for 5 years.
What Would Convince Me To Stick Around?
That’s a simple question to answer because there are several clear reasons. Each of these reasons is a close correlate to the same reasons many continue prostituting themselves Monday through Friday, 9 to 5, in the name of a j-o-b. My reasons boiled down to:
- Keeping a safe, secure government job. Gotta love that!
- Getting a steady paycheck. Gotta get that money!
- Playing it safe and building job experience. Gotta have a job!
Each of these reasons stems from one root word: fear! Upon further analysis of my fear-based reasoning, I decided that each of these legitimate reasons were bullshit. To see why these reasons are toilet paper status, let’s take a quick look at the some of the fear-based buzz words: safe, secure, job.
Safe
Not for me. As I learned more and more about the global impacts of what I was involved sticking around became everything but safe. Plus, the continuous support for the reckless, fallacious so-called War on Terror was like a vice grip on my personal convictions. It’s not safe to sacrifice yourself for any damn job. Period.
Secure
This is a joke. We all know that no job is secure, per se. Anyone can be subject to downsizing, firing, or simple job closures. Besides, today’s elevated unemployment rate includes many people who had “secure” jobs.
The government has a strong reputation for being more secure than most and that’s a point I won’t necessarily argue. But I will tell you that military bases do close, pay freezes happen, and “reductions in force” take place leaving many people feeling quite insecure about their positions.
Job
For many, this can be defined as “the over glorified effort to get a steady paycheck”. It sounds cool at the cocktail parties, happy hour socials, and is a great way to gain rapport with other folks. Just think of how cool is was for me to be able to tell someone I had a j-o-b working for the Department of Defense as if I sat next to President Obama. Truth be told, it’s all transitory.
So What Are You Doing Now Without A Job?
Now, I’m working on building my business online with WOMB Apparel – a self-empowerment lifestyle tee-shirt brand. Rather than having the mission of propagating weapons systems into the world, I propagate my mission to self-empower and educate. The site launched in December of 2010. There is no moral prostitution involved since I create in accord with my mission and vision.
Is it a safe, secure job? No, this is entrepreneurship and there’s a different set of rules for building a legitimate business versus being a government employee. The holy trinity of “safe, secure, job” isn’t one that echoes through the halls of my mind. That phrase has been replaced with “opportunity, cash flow and systems”. I give my praise to that.
Quitting the j-o-b was not the easiest thing to do. In the process of quitting I discovered a lot about myself and had to confront my deeply held fears. But quitting went from an option to a necessity, as I could no longer support a mission I discovered to be incongruent with my identity.
If your j-o-b is the same for you, I advise you work on making your exit now. Look at the calendar, mark a resignation date, and get ready to jump… somewhere. Whether it’s another j-o-b opportunity that works for you or an entrepreneurial adventure.
The time is now.
Dion Baker is the creator of Infinite Productions LLC – an educational company dedicated to self-empowerment through creative media. He launched the empowerment lifestyle fashion brand WOMB Apparel in 2010 and recently authored the book titled ReBirth Certificate the wisdom of mind and body (WOMB) philosophy of creation.
He is a hip hop vocalist and writer with a catalog of songs about spirituality, metaphysics, sociology, politics, race, and economics. His blog can be found at wombapparel.com.

William Tha Great
Hey Dion,
This is an amazing article great job!
I can’t wait till the day I can quit my job. I know one day I will be able to but, I’m not sure how long that is going to take right now. I work hard every single day to build my own business to a point where I will be able to quit. If I keep working towards my goals than one day I know I can obtain them.
It’s awesome that you are having success with your business. I plan on selling t-shirts at some point for sure!
God bless,
William Veasley
Dion Baker
Hey William,
Thanks for the best wishes! Regarding your situation, the more clarity you can get for how long it will take to leave your j-o-b, the better. How much money you’ll need, how long it will take to get it are a couple things that you want to have a clear idea of.
If you ever need any insight or help for your t-shirt idea or with your business ideas in general, let me know!
+Dion
Patricia@lavender-oil
Hi Steve and Dion
Great that you took the steps you needed to begin living the life you wanted for yourself. Takes courage to stand for what you believe in and then live it out, whatever the cost.
All the best for 2001. May all you hope for and more come to fruition for you Dion. Going over to check out your site now 🙂
Patricia Perth Australia
Steve
I love Dion’s story. Here’s a guy who had a “great” job with the Government and could have worked there hi swhole life, gotten great benefits and a pension at retirement. Instead, knew that it wasn’t his life’s purpose and chose to take action. Now, he’s doing something he loves and gets to work with his wife!
Dion Baker
Hey Patricia,
Thanks for the support! I’m looking forward to seeing how the business grows/develops in 2011. We’ll see what types of fruit come to fruition from this tree I’m growing 🙂
Also, you’ve got a very cool niche for your site… all lavender! Excellent approach and good content.
+Dion
Elise
Hi Steve and Dion,
This was such an inspirational story! I actually really like hearing about other people’s experiences in all of this.
Honestly, I don’t think ANY job can be considered “secure,” whether it’s a regular job or entrepreneurship. I hate it when people say that working for someone else is more secure than starting you own business. Who are they kidding? Mr. Boss man can pull the plug whenever they want!
Right now, I’m a student, and I will need to get a job after graduating but I have no problem with it because I know for a fact that it won’t be a forever thing.
Great post, thanks so much for sharing your story with all of us!
Steve
Hey Elise,
I have to agree. Dion is definitely an inspiration to me.
The problem with conventional thinking about a “secure” job is that is complete crap. There is NO security. Is building a business risky? Of course! But so is having a job.
I could be fired tomorrow and have zero income. When I have my own thriving online business, there will be no boss to can me. It will be up to me to make it work.
I love your mindset, knowing that a job will be temporary for you. I think that will help you in more ways than one..plus, you’ve got a great blog that will someday be very profitable!!
Dion Baker
Hey Elise,
Agreed!
And having light at the end of the job tunnel is a big relief! At that point, you can use the job to work for you rather than you working for the job!
The latter can keep you on the 40+ year work plan with dreams of “living your dreams” in retirement as a senior… maybe.
Thank you for your feedback!
Eugene @ Lifestyle Design
I love the fact that you point out that jobs aren’t necessarily “safe” as it is propagated by society. Unemployment shouldn’t be such an issue if jobs are so safe (then again I think the fact that government pays unemployment actually breeds unemployment…but that’s a different issue).
I congratulate Dion on taking life into your own hands. I do have to tell you that describing that j-o-b during dinner parties WOULD sound pretty impressing. But telling people that you own your own business and promote self-empowerment doesn’t sound too shabby either 🙂
Dion Baker
Hey Eugene,
You’ve got a good point about the dinner party description! 🙂
The “safe” idea is, ultimately, a myth. Even for those that are still employed and may never actually deal with a layoff, being cowed into submission to the rigid “do it like this or get fired” culture can be unsafe for the human expression of ideas and implementation of solutions.
David
Just wanted to add my words of encouragement. That is what I love about this site, everyone here understands that there is something more out there than having a “career”. Nothing can replace finding your passion and doing something you love for a living.
Thanks to Steve and Dion!
Steve
You said it David!
That’s what it’s all about, knowing that there IS something much better for any one of us. We just need to go out andfind it and then take it!
Dion Baker
To all, thanks for the feedback! The security of the job I had was a difficult hurdle for me to climb since it was an idea I accepted intellectually and emotionally. But as I evaluated my situation and the situation of others that stayed along the path similar to what I was traveling, I realized that my ideas of security were a myth because I was risking my life (Living an Intelligent and Fulfilling Experience) and that’s not a secure thing for me. Ultimately, I no longer found meaning in my suffering lol
Just a couple general tips for those thinking of making an exit from the j-o-b world (or any place, really):
1) Brainstorm worse case scenarios and evaluate your biggest fears from a factual level
2) Develop a plan that gets you out, and also provides solutions to the worse case scenarios in #1
Thanks to everyone for allowing me to share my story!
Steve
Dion,
Well said, my friend.
I am seriously hoping that people open up their eyes and realize that they are not living their lives, but rather just passing time until they die. It HAS to stop!
Pursue your passion now, don’t wait! There is no reason that anyone is resigned to live a less than awesome life.
Thanks for your wisdom, Dion
Dion Baker
Steve,
My pleasure! You said it best, “… just passing time until they die.” That’s a powerful takeaway!
Steve
That’s exactly how I feel. I can honestly say that I feel like I have wasted the last 4 years of my life by staying at my job. It’s a sad realizations. All I can hope for now is not to waste another one….
Kathy
Great post and great t-shirts! I’m heading to womb apparel as soon as I finish typing this.
Just like many others, I’ve stayed in the wrong job too long. In my case, I was even being under paid and waaay overworked and still stayed. It’s funny how your sense of commitment or drive can sometimes work against you. You feel disloyal or as though you haven’t completed the task if you leave a job.
I think a good sign you’ve done the right thing by quitting is taking your emotional temperature minutes after you resign. If you feel like dancing in the street because the weight has been lifted off your shoulders…you’ve done the right thing. Get your gig on.
Nice post, thanks for sharing.
Dion Baker
Hey Kathy,
Good point about taking one’s emotional temperature! That’s a technique that can be done for approaching the fears in leaving the j-o-b also.
There are at least 2 ways of leaving; emotionally and physically. Anything to help with the emotional departure is critical. Part of the issue with jobs are our emotional attachment to them and seeing them as our life’s savior. Whether in or out of a job, we should evaluate our emotional attachments to them. If we’re not able to walk away, we’re stuck.
Caleb Wojcik
Wonderful transparency Dion. Staying in the wrong job for your whole life is an awful way to live. Thanks for sharing your journey and some of the decisions you made.
Tito Philips, Jnr.
Hello Dion and Steve,
That you took the courage to quit your job and go into your own business is awesome. Many just simply talk about it and i can say they that you are among the rare who act on it.
Welcome into the realm of entrepreneurship. Not an easy one, but definitely a worthwhile one. In the end, you would have more life and more fulfillment than being an employee.
Steve
Hey Tito,
Although I have not quit my job yet, I am working on it every single day. Dion is an inspiration to me becasue he left a “secure”, well paying job in order to pursue his dreams. Not many people will ever take that chance!
Dion Baker
Hey Tito,
Thanks for the welcoming! 🙂
I must say that quitting my job was the best single decision I made in 2010. So far, it certainly has not been the easy road but neither was my job life at the time. As I grew into greater consciousness of my job situation, it became more painful. It was like being anesthetized in the middle of an operation and then waking up (become conscious) mid-surgery to experience the pain.
Yuhannes Watts
Dion,
A great read. You continue to grow, learn, teach and inspire others on your path to empowerment and genuine enlightenment. All while staying true to the WOMB personal philosophy which you created. Sending continued success, encouragement and more good energy your way.
-One
Dion Baker
Hey Yuhannes,
Big thanks for the support! I plan to implement the WOMB philosophy along the journey.
One!