I quit my job the other day. I had been asked to do more and more over the passing months, up to and including things that I normally charge $40/hour for in my computer repair business but at a pay scale that is less than the entry-level pay at McDonald’s and other local businesses. While I had already been considering the thought of leaving, it took a single moment of disrespect to make me realize that I had tolerated enough. The owner has a god-like reputation; tales of how he has mistreated senior management (and even low-level workers) are
The messages of support I received from family and friends since then have astounded me. Many of them expressed the desire to have the ability to quit their jobs as well, sharing horror stories that make my previous position look like a cakewalk in comparison.
The single most common question they asked concerned my finances: “How are you going to pay your bills?”
Between my investment income and my royalties, I’ve got that covered, so instead of accepting a job immediately, I decided to take some time off from working a public job to think.
Because I’ve realized something.
I’ve realized that despite the hope for better work conditions, that workers are still treated like slaves. We are used until we fall apart and then discarded like so much trash. God forbid that we grow old or get hurt because they just don’t care.
We are nothing in the eyes of our employers.
We work their jobs and buy their stuff; without us, they wouldn’t even have their businesses. Despite that, they tell us how grateful we should be to even have a job with their companies. We should accept whatever they decide to dish out because they believe that we would starve otherwise.
But you know what?
They’re wrong.
We don’t have to take their abuse.
We don’t have to work their crappy jobs.
We don’t have to tolerate their disrespect.
We can walk away.
Stop working their jobs. Stop buying from their businesses. We can hit them in the one place where they will feel it the most: their pocketbooks.
I realize that not everyone has developed a passive income that can support them.
I realize that not everyone knows how to manage their finances quite the way I do.
I realize that, due to the above two reasons, many people feel that they can’t escape their current circumstances. They are literally trapped in the chains of wage slavery and they don’t know the way out.
I want to help with that.
If you feel the same then I have a mission for you: I want you to find just one person who has achieved financial freedom and ask them for help.
I want to make this website a place where people can learn from all sorts of experts about not only ways to lower their living expenses but how to build passive income sources as well.
I want to teach the world how to break the chains of wage slavery.
But I can’t do it without your help.
If you are reading this and you’ve already achieved financial freedom, email me.
Together we can change the world.
Annie, THANK YOU FOR THIS POST!! Thank you for your endless encouragement . I came here today b/c I had to leave my job and here YOU are, cheering me on without knowing it. Speaking my truth & routing for my dream..by sharing your experiences & heart
Thank you
What? OMG Kristy are you okay?
Yes, thank you so much Annie. Just having to start over again… I’m back to “Shoestring Girl” !! 🙏🏼❤️
You and me both, my friend! If it wasn’t for minimalism, I wouldn’t have been able to walk away. I am so thankful for that ability. I pray that I can teach others how to break free as well.
In hindsight, taking that job was a good thing. It gave me a renewed sense of purpose and showed me, beyond a shadow of a doubt, what I don’t want my life to be about. I would rather be “poor” and free than “wealthy” and a slave.
Then again, since the wealthy define their wealth by the amount of freedom they have, I’m actually a bit wealthier than many people.
Congratulations , Annie, and making all of the small and big decisions you have made so you are free. Just sent you an email. I’m in.
Thank you so much for the vote of confidence, Karen! I’ve read your email. It’s rather late here so I’ll send you a response in the morning.
AMEN! Enough is enough.
Then let’s see if we can rock the boat okay, Kelly? Help me by spreading the word. This has GOT to stop!
Dear Annie,
Well done you!
I would like to point out that not all wage labour is slavery. I’ve had some pretty decent jobs in the past, where my contribution was truly valued. And those employers actually helped me out when I got cancer. Having said that: I’ve had some extremely crappy slavelike jobs as well. Not ok. I guess you’re right: t is up to us to put the bad employers out of business (and become amazing employers ourselves!).
T ake care luv,
Carolina
Exactly, Carolina! In my experience, there are both good and bad employers, but the only way to show the bad ones that things need to change is for us to hit them where it hurts them the most–their pocketbooks.
Wonderful, from how you explained things it is without a doubt the right decision for your context. The only way it could get any better is if they are forced to pay somebody else (or maybe even you) a higher rate for the computer issues they were having you fix for them while they were underpaying you. Not to mention the extra time that it frees up will allow you to write books faster and increase your passive income.
Hello, John!
They will definitely have to pay someone a higher wage to do some of those repairs. As an experiment once, I pretended not to know how to repair an issue. They ended up spending a small fortune to ship the device off for repair. I watched as the device was returned to them, hiding my glee as they informed me that the issue had been what I had secretly diagnosed. I had been fed up with that place for a while, I’m afraid.
Good luck young lady.
Thank you, Squire!