Walk away from what doesn’t serve you — be that a job, person, or toxic environment. Forget walking, run, run fast. No more are the days where we sit back and let our circumstances drain every ounce of our spirit.

I quit my first full-time job. Yes, I quit, left, goodbye. It feels so good to say that. This was a crash course in self-worth, growth, and empowerment.

The expectation for building your career and finding your footing in any given industry as a Gen Y emerging leader is that you must struggle immensely to get where you want — this means long hours that will inevitably push you to the brink of burnout, tons of personal sacrifice for a place that unapologetically expresses how replaceable you are, disrespect as a welcome to the culture of the workplace, little to no days off, and the pressure that even with all of that you exceed expectations.

Leaving work early on one occasion due to a severe throat condition that ended in an urgent care visit and antibiotics, was met with a write-up for breaking a rule that wasn’t clearly and proactively communicated with me, to begin with. The gag is that now I don’t have to battle work obligation guilt with self-care, as I turned leaving early from severe burnout into leaving permanently. Coupled with structure and management that simply did not align with my values and needs was an environment that was so unstable and broken that my impact and skills could not be used in best practice for the best interest of my students. 

I was struggling with staying or leaving my former place of employment for weeks. Staying would mean I would be following a commitment and that I would be miserable while leaving signaled failure. If I left, then I had failed my students, my school team, and myself. I was open about these feelings of failure to my loved ones. Their support and words of wisdom had made me realize that the only failure I would have committed is complete neglect of myself, had I stayed. 

If you are in a space where you are discerning leaving, I want you to ask yourself one pivotal question… is this hurting me or empowering me?

As a self-proclaimed growth enthusiast, I had a major revelation from an ongoing conversation I was having with myself. I love growth and leveling up. Like Queen Bey said in Homecoming, I appreciate results that are built from the ground up and on hard work. When I decided to take a more intentional and active role in my growth, I noticed how fixated I became on only the growth. For the past few months, I have been looking and searching for wins, progress, and personal achievement wherever I could find it. Existing in this headspace meant that most days I walked away feeling empty, especially in the line of work I did. That’s not the type of growth enthusiast I’d like to be. 

I realized that being a growth enthusiast is not about loving growth, it’s about mastering pain and discomfort to achieve growth! The enthusiasm should be centered on exploring the process, which has inevitably lead you to your growth. 

Introspection, self-reflection, and self-talk revealed that I needed to leave but that I wouldn’t be leaving empty-handed. Coaching young minds has taught me so much, so much about myself, our next generation, and about the world. For that, I am grateful. I know now that leaving my work as a student success coach, the proof is in the pudding. My trademark is etched in the hearts of all of those who met me through my intentional approach to draw the light out of them, uplift them, include them, and deeply connect with them. 

Leave on a high note, even if your experience remained on a low one.

As a black man living in America, I have worked tirelessly to build a solid professional reputation that is reflective of my trademark and brand. I approached my last day on the job with the same energy I showed up with on the first. In every space that you occupy, you should be thinking about what type of impression you would like to leave. 

I am excited to spend more time pouring into my own cup and saging myself from all the unsettling energy that existed in that environment through a well deserved and highly anticipated trip for the Thanksgiving holiday! I absolutely believe that this is an ESSENTIAL part of any transition — time away and time to reflect. I am perennially thankful for the time and space to do this, and for the ability to move on from what isn’t serving me. I fully recognize that not everyone is in a position to do this. 

If you do have the means to leave, cleanse and purge. Don’t take that burn out, anger, and pent up energy with you on your next stop. Leave it right at the door on your way out. When you take old negative energy into new situations, you are preventing yourself from receiving any sort of abundance.  

Leaving for me was about empowering myself, choosing myself, and reigniting my spark. It was about reclaiming power over my own life. You are in control and you can empower yourself more than any opportunity, moment, or other people ever could. I spend so much time on this platform, putting together my quintessential messages to uplift you all. So, what kind of model would I be… if I didn’t uplift myself where and when I needed to most? I want to serve as a model for how imperative it is that we put ourselves first and how much more impactful the work we do can be when our spirit is fed, first and foremost.