In our 2011 post event survey, the number one reason people were afraid of contemplating a career break was the fear that they wouldn’t be able to save enough money. No surprise there. But what was surprising was that a fear of quitting their job was second. Besides being afraid of not finding work post-break, what is so scary about the actual act of giving notice?

Lori Sussle, a member of our Basic Training community, was terrified to give notice. But the positive reactions she received from colleagues and friends took her by surprise.

Giving my notice and making it ‘really’ official was a lot more nerve-racking than I had originally thought it would be. I was nervous to give my notice for several reasons, one of which was that there was no going back after that!

My boss was unbelievably supportive, which was great, since he is based across the country and I have never given my notice on the phone before. I was shaking before I told him, after I told him and still shaking once our conversation ended.

Once I gave my notice, I felt comfortable officially announcing it. Well, a day later. I was still trembling as I prepared to hit send on an email I had prepared a week prior. Close friends and family had known of my plans, but those that I did not see as frequently were not as in the loop on my process, so I am pretty sure I threw some people for a loop.

As you can imagine the response to my announcement was overwhelming. There were three emails from friends that stood out to me.

Two of the three I had not seen in some time and therefore knew nothing of my plans. Neither of the two know each other but at the times in our lives when we were the closest, I considered them like an older brother, and I am pretty sure they felt like I was their younger sister.

The third just had a life change herself and did know of my plans, just not how far they had progressed. Here is an abbreviated version but you can get the point, and the support!

What reactions have you received when sharing your career break news?