You might already know this, but today was my last day of work at NEOVIA Financial. Giving notice a few weeks ago was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in the last four-and-a-half years, and I didn’t do it lightly, or without tears.

In the last 10 years, I’ve been lucky enough to have two teachers in my life who have taught me a lot about recognizing when it’s time to leave your job (or relationship, or friendship, or whatever). Here’s the wisdom they shared with me:

1. Did you meet the commitments you made? That’s what my mom, Ruby Bedi, the well-known Calgary spiritual counselor, asked me when I shared with her that I was feeling it was time for me to move on. I shook my head in confusion. So often we think about whether the company has met its commitments to us, the employees (and often we are leaving disgruntled because we feel like we’ve been short-changed by the company). Here she asked me to look at the same thing but from the opposite direction. At the time, the answer was no. No, I had not met all of my commitments. I ended up staying another six months at that job until I felt like I had fulfilled all of the promises and things that had been asked of me when I first joined. I felt I could then move on with a deep satisfaction that I met every one of my commitments, if not more. Instead of leaving with resentment, I left with gratefulness.
2. Don’t ever chase the golden ring. That’s what Ron, who owns a successful management consulting company in Calgary, unsympathetically said to me only weeks into a job I took to increase my income and management experience. He said that I made the mistake of going after “more.” More money, more power, more this, more that, moremoremore. He kind of said it to me like I deserved the pain I was experiencing in my new job. I went for moremoremore and hated it. I learned then never to expect more from the next job, just to expect something different.

Here’s the one thing I ask when someone tells me they want to move on to another job. Are you leaving something or are you going toward something? If you are making the move to leave something, you’ll end up having to face it somewhere else. You can’t leave shit. It will find you, even at your next job. If you are moving toward something new that is inspiring or calling you, then you have to ask yourself whether it’s fantasy you are chasing or whether it’s just the next right thing for you. And if you can move on without any illusions that the grass is greener on the other side, I say (in the wise words of my step-mother), go for it!

I want to take a few minutes to thank the amazing people at NEOVIA for the incredible experiences, memories and the opportunity to have done four re-brands in four years! It’s truly been an honour and privilege to have led such a smart team and to have witnessed so many people grow, personally and professionally. I can honestly say it was here where I learned who I am and want to be as a leader. Thank you NEOVIA, you surely met your commitment to me.

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