Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.”
― Helen Keller, The Open Door

On January 7th as a birthday gift to myself, I decided to put in my two-weeks notice at Creative Artists Agency. For the past four months, I have had the great honor of working at CAA as a mailroom clerk. As great of an opportunity, it is to work here, I realized that it wasn’t working for me. When I announced via social media that I was leaving, I received so many calls, texts, and messages inquiring about why I decided to go. It’s vital for me to tell my own story and leave no room for ambiguity regarding my decisions. With that said, I decided to share these thoughts about “Why I Quit My Job On My Birthday.” 

Business Attire

A large part of the reason why I’m quitting is that I wouldn’t say I like wearing suits and dress shoes daily. Everyone knows I don’t drive at all, so I walk a lot. I enjoy walking, and it gives me time to think, breathe, and get my body moving—I love it. Working in an agency, I’m expected to wear a suit every day with a random, casual dress day every now and then. I wish I could wear sneakers to work, but unfortunately, that’s not the agency culture. Working and running for 10 hours a day in dress shoes is not fun at all. 

It’s costly to wear clean, matching suits too. I’ve spent more money on dry cleaning and ties than I would like to share. Trying to keep up with the culture has cost me a lot of money and saddens me whenever I slip up. I’m sure it’s a reason why a lot of first-gen, urban employees don’t work at these agencies. If you can’t afford the outfits, it makes coming to work much more difficult. 

For me, getting dressed for work is easily the hardest part of my day. Matching the shoes and shirts with the suits five days out of the week is overwhelming for me. If I had the money to have a barrage of suits, Uber every day, so I never have to walk and have more shoes, it would’ve made the job more enjoyable. 

I Want To Be Myself

In new hire orientation, we were told that a conflict of interest project could get me fired. Legally because my job has a books and TV Scripted department, employees are not allowed to have meetings where they sell scripts, books, or make money from intellectual properties. As a published author and scriptwriter, I know that by working where I do, I would be unable to pursue my passion for selling projects that I write. Being an author and writing is such a large part of my identity. I remember back in October when I learned of this rule how disheveled it made me feel. I thought,

“Who was I if I have to hide my accolades and aspirations?” 

“What if someone sees my Instagram or website, and I get fired on the spot?”

I’m not a person who moves in silence or is elusive regarding my ambitions. I’m a gregarious, loud, go-getter. Now that I’m leaving the agency, I can be free to write, self promote, and pursue passion projects with no ceiling. By leaving my job, I feel like I snatched back a piece of my soul that was slowly slipping away. I’m proud that I recognized the impact these legal boundaries had on my soul and took action.

I work at the #1 talent agency in the world. Some young kids would cut their left hand off to walk the halls of the company. I get emotional thinking about the young kid in school begging to get into the internship program at CAA or be a mailroom clerk. For me to occupy a slot on the employee roster knowing I wasn’t super passionate about the job, robs someone else of the incredible opportunity to work here. 

One truth about these corporate jobs is that none of us are irreplaceable. As I’m heading out, I’m confident that another group of clerks is being prepped to come in. I’m happy that by me leaving someone else may be able to go in and take my spot who wants to be here. 

I Hope To Inspire 

In life so often, we can accept circumstances that don’t satisfy us because we feel it is all we can get. This thinking is rooted in fear and scarcity. I firmly believe that we live in an abundant universe filled with goodness and opportunities. I quit my job because it wasn’t working for me, and I know I can find something better. I’m hoping that my bold decision to look for something better will inspire others to do the same. The world isn’t changed with theoretical lectures and sermons; stories and actions change the world. I’m hoping by someone following my story and witnessing my decisions, it will inspire them to make a change in their life too.

Conclusion

My last day at CAA is January 24th, and then I’m out in the world to figure it out. I feel peace about my decision to leave CAA. I have no regrets about the choices I’ve made to get to this point. The biggest reason I decided to work at CAA in the first place was to meet people. When I think about some of the incredible people I’ve met in these past four months, I smile. Regardless of what happens, I know that some of the people I’ve met here will be my friends for life. 

In summation, I pray this decision inspires you to step out on faith in your life. I have no savings, no job lined up, or even a real plan, but I’m going to try and make something happen. If I have anything, I have a deep belief in myself and in the goodness of life. I’m grateful for this journey and proud of myself for making this decision. I’m very excited to see what will happen next.