• Laura Gassner Otting, an executive coach, advises taking control of work aspects you can manage.
• If you're motivated to find a new job but don't know if it's the right time, assess your stress.
• It could be the right time if you get the Sunday Scaries or have had a change in life circumstances.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Laura Gassner Otting, a career expert and executive coach in Boston. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I'm a career expert, executive coach, and the author of three books about career satisfaction and workforce engagement.

In the current economy, with looming fears of layoffs, workers are favoring stability over upward mobility. Rather than seeking greener pastures elsewhere, they want to improve their current working environment.

When it feels like layoffs are lurking around every corner, it's easy to think the best thing you can do is keep your head down and hope no one notices you.

The truth is, now is the time to step up — not step back — and take ownership of the parts of your work you can control.

I started my career at one of the best search firms in the country

I worked at Isaacson Miller for five years. One day, I realized I could do this work better and faster, with more profit for us and less cost for our clients. My boss didn't agree, so I quit.

In 2002, I founded Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group, a global executive search firm, and started calling highly successful people to recruit them. We found them by calling industry leaders across fields and asking for recommendations for shining stars. The recruits called us back because they were successful but weren't happy in their roles.

In my experience, everyone always wonders if there is something better out there. Recruiting firms would've gone out of business long ago if this weren't the case.

I sold that search firm to the team of women who helped me build it in 2016.

Money is not the only consideration for people wanting a new job

Many people think the top consideration for jumping ship is money, but in my more than two decades of experience, I've found that's not the case.

In recruiting, we say there are about eight motivating factors that will inspire anyone, anywhere, at any time to consider taking a new job:

• Money
• Mission
• Leadership
• Challenge
• Scope of impact
• Acquisition of new skills
• Prestige
• Personal needs

In research I spearheaded through Limitless Assessment, with more than 7,000 responses from people in 74 countries, only 36.7% said that money is the most important factor in determining their happiness at work.

If you're motivated to find a new job based on one or more of those eight factors but are unsure if it's the right time, there are indicators that you need to make a move now.

Here are the top reasons people should leave a job for a new opportunity

1. You're exhausted at the end of every day

If your boss, colleagues, or clients are draining you of energy, it's a good sign that they aren't bringing out the best version of you but the one constantly feeling stressed and defensive. If that's the case, odds are that you aren't doing your best work, and your career will eventually stagnate.

2. You have the Sunday Scaries every single week

Our research found that almost all of us want work to be part of what inspires us to get out of bed every morning. If you start to get depressed on Sunday evenings, that's not happening for you.

3. You're making your need-to-make number but not even approaching a plan to get to your want-to-make number

Your need-to-make number is what it costs, at minimum, to afford the life that you have now, while your want-to-make number includes going out for meals, taking a vacation, and other expenses.

4. There's greater potential available for you beyond your current role

Feeling boxed into narrow responsibilities can be frustrating. One client of mine stepped in for a last-minute presentation to her Fortune 100 company board and discovered she loved being onstage. Realizing she wanted a public-facing leadership role, she left her current company when it couldn't offer one, joining a competitor where she could pursue her ambitions.

5. There's a shift in your life circumstances

A startup founder who once thrived on long hours and intense work had a change in priorities after the birth of his daughter. Wanting to be more present at home, he sought a job with better work-life balance and financial stability.

6. You feel unseen in your current role

Another client felt her contributions were undervalued and overshadowed by a louder colleague. When her boss didn't address the imbalance, she left for a new job where the recruitment process and a significant pay increase made her feel more appreciated and valued.

Don't let other people decide what success is for you

The most common mistake I see in my line of work is people judging their current definition of success by the outdated definitions handed to them by other people. While they may be filling in all the checkboxes, they still feel empty.

You can't be insatiably hungry for someone else's goals, so you will never work hard enough for the achievement that belongs to someone else's success. This always leads to boredom, disengagement, and career stagnation.

The myopic, one-size-fits-all, fastest, and most expedient path to the corner office is the old definition of success, but today, there are innumerable ways to work that align with who we want to be, not just what we've been told we have to be.

• Paul Travis started his career as a marketing consultant but left the industry after a layoff.
• He launched a dating program for singles over 40 during the pandemic called The School for Love.
• Now, Travis is a certified sex educator and embraces a digital nomad lifestyle.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Paul Travis, the 59-year-old founder of The School for Love based in Bainbridge Island, Washington. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I'm a sex educator and the founder of The School for Love. I have a BA in mathematics and computer science and completed the Harvard Executive Program in Brand Management.

After a two-year stint as the VP of marketing for Net Nanny Software in the early 2000s, I took my Harvard postgrad executive branding work into consulting for a variety of client engagements, from rebranding to new product launch to marketing systems implementation, in industries from food manufacturing to laser lighting to SaaS services.

In December 2013, I was engaged to implement a customer community program for Avalara, a fintech company. Eighteen months later, I transitioned to full-time employment as a senior program manager for the web marketing team.

After losing this job, I decided to leave consulting behind and become a sex educator.

I was laid off in September 2020

Avalara brought its first CMO aboard in late 2019. In January 2020, my manager told me that the two program management roles inside marketing would be eliminated. I set out to find another position within the company, but with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and financial uncertainty, most hiring came to a standstill.

As we entered spring, I mentally braced for losing more than $10,000 monthly in income and benefits. I was earning six figures a year when I left Avalara. I'd enjoyed growing with the company through an IPO, but at the same time, I was tired of the increasing energy drain and uninterested in another corporate gig.

I was excited and uncertain when I was laid off in September 2020, but I trusted that I was embarking on the next big chapter of my life.

I knew I was interested in midlife dating

As David Bowie said, "Aging is an extraordinary process whereby you become the person you always should've been." I learned how important variety is to me, so returning to a past chapter like consulting (like returning to a past lover) didn't call to me — I wanted to build a company.

I researched a few ideas that had been in the back of my mind and decided to focus on midlife dating, with which I was extremely comfortable after my divorce following a 19-year marriage.

Given the lockdowns and masking during the pandemic, I understood how difficult this was for singles — many of whom say it was already more challenging than during the last 10 years.

Given my years of study in nonviolent communication, tantra, and interpersonal work, I felt a passion brewing to help people in this very different realm of training, propelled by COVID-19.

I started an online program for singles over 40

In February 2021, I launched my twelve-week online program, "The Great Dating Reset," for $999 under the umbrella Pandemic.Love to help spiritual singles over 40 cultivate "authintimacy" — a portmanteau of authenticity and intimacy.

I found my initial clients from advertising on Facebook. It was heartwarming to help Sue, a 52-year-old woman, navigate a new relationship and save her from being taken advantage of for a few thousand dollars. Equally so for Sally, who had been painfully dumped from a seven-year relationship and found esteem and self-love through the homework exercises.

Since rebranding in January 2022 as SchoolForLove.com, I've run two to three group programs online each year. Later in 2022, I created and hosted a summit for this same audience, "Dare to Date Differently," along with 12 other speakers.

I next became a certified sex educator

In speaking regularly with people about their dating lives and our program, I found just how often singles brought up sexuality as a core area of worry, shame, or frustration. I set out in 2023 to study with Dr. Martha Tara Lee in Singapore and became a certified sex educator, certified by AASECT (the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists).

I haven't yet reached my former salaried income level, but I've lowered my expenses by renting out my house and having a tight budget. I downsized into my Sprinter van and embraced van life. I'm thankful technology allows me to work as a digital nomad. I've traveled more in the past three years than ever.

I'd make the choice all over again

I'm delighted to make a genuine difference in people's love lives rather than in corporate software and marketing.

I'm writing a book on "Authintimacy," so I spend a lot of time on social media and marketing systems, talking to clients and prospects, and managing several freelancers. I'm in the process of launching my second program, Authintimacy Brotherhood.

I work six to seven days a week from anywhere between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., but I take time every day to be in nature, play with my dog, and nurture my spirit away from the computer.

Society teaches us to get on the "life escalator," and everything will eventually work out for retirement. That's not how my life has worked, but I have no fears about retirement.

I've had some devastating detours, awesome advances, and circuitous change-ups. I have no career regrets and appreciate the various chapters and people in my life.

• Danielle-Ann Kealohilani Rugg moved back to Hawaii to care for her family during the pandemic.
• She balances event work, a tax business, and family life amid Hawaii's high living costs.
• Despite the challenges, she finds beauty in Hawaii but would return to Oregon for lower living costs.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Danielle-Ann Kealohilani Rugg, a 39-year-old entrepreneur and event staff professional who relocated from Oregon to Hawaii. It's been edited for length and clarity.

I have an ever-evolving career. I balance my event work with Aloha HP, running a successful tax practice, and caring for my family on Oahu in Hawaii.

My path has been a mix of culinary aspirations, entrepreneurial ventures, and family-driven decisions. I was born and raised on Oahu. In 2005, when my twin daughters were 1, I moved to California, where I lived for six years before settling in Oregon. Oregon became home for most of my children's lives, spanning the last decade.

I've been back on Oahu since the pandemic, and while it's gorgeous, the high cost of living is challenging.

My professional life began with a passion for food

I moved to Oregon after a divorce to help care for my grandparents, and I fell in love with everything about the state. I had always seen the different seasons in movies and TV shows and longed to experience them, and that dream finally came true. The other amazing thing about the state was the absence of sales tax.

I enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu in Portland to pursue my passion for baking and pâtisserie. After completing the two-year associate degree program, I worked in various roles, from baker to cashier to server.

Each position taught me invaluable lessons about customer service, multitasking, and time management, especially when catering large events. It wasn't just about bread and coffee cups but about creating memorable client experiences.

My family always came first. Wanting to be closer to my children, I became a lunch lady at their high school. Surprisingly, this was one of the most fulfilling roles I've had.

I continued my side hustle while in Oregon

I shift gears every February and dive into tax season with my mother. We've been running a tax prep business since my early 20s. We realized the hard work we put in for someone else's business could be channeled into something of our own.

The time zone difference was challenging while I was in Oregon, but we made it work. Depending on our clientele for the year, we make $50,000 to $75,000 annually.

My mother and I get along very well. Our relationship is not perfect, but we've found a good balance between our professional and personal lives.

The only downside I experienced in Oregon was the limited places to swim

The ocean was about an hour and a half away, but the water was always freezing. Although it was beautiful, going to a beach and being unable to jump in dampened the experience.

There were lakes, but they were freezing because all the freshwater came from the mountains. We also had a few facilities we could go to, but that would involve getting a membership, and not all of them were indoors.

When the pandemic hit, my family had to make a change

In 2020, as the world was grappling with the onset of COVID-19, my mother suffered an injury, and she needed help. She lived in Honolulu, and despite the comfortable life my children and I had built in Oregon, I needed to return home.

It wasn't an easy decision, especially during my kids' junior year in high school, but sometimes life demands hard choices. The transition was tough, but ultimately, it was the right move for my mother's well-being. We also moved my grandmother back with us, who has dementia.

Back on Oahu, I found a job with Aloha HP, a Hawaiian staffing company. Aloha HP allowed me to keep up with my business while maintaining an open schedule to care for my family, which was a relief.

I'm primarily involved with event staff work

I do anything from setting up for weddings and banquets to serving guests. These gigs can last four to nine hours.

I average about 80 hours of work a month and earn between $1,350 and $1,900. It's a dynamic way to work, and I enjoy its variety and challenges.

I've learned my self-care cannot be an afterthought. I always carve out two days during my hectic workweek just for myself.

Now that I'm back in Hawaii, the downsides are clear

The cost of living is one of Hawaii's biggest downsides. When I lived in Oregon, my rent for my three-bedroom, two-bath, two-car garage home with a yard was $1,500. Electricity was, on average, $250, and my water bill was around $80. Car registration for both of my cars totaled $275 for two years. Groceries cost us around $500 a month.

Now, my rent, which my family helps with, is $3,550 for a slightly larger home than I had in Oregon. Our electricity is almost three times the amount I paid in Oregon, running on average $660 and up. Water is around $220, and car registration is $445, but only valid for one year.

The grocery stores here also have inflated prices. I may earn more money in Hawaii, but it's offset by the cost of living in Hawaii being much greater than in Oregon.

It's still paradise

Living in paradise is amazing; don't get me wrong. I'm close to my family, the ocean is nearby, the sun almost always shines, and even when it doesn't, the rain is a nice, cool temperature — not freezing cold.

Still, if I had to choose between the two places, I would move back to Oregon, only because the cost of living here is so high.

I've realized, though, that Hawaii is and always will be home. Despite the changes in times and technological advancements, living on an island still offers so much beauty. Just being here is a gift in itself.

Even though I once said I'd never move back, life has a way of leading you where you need to be.

• Erwin Jacob Miciano left the Navy in 2021 to focus on his real estate business full-time.
• Miciano and his wife used VA loans to buy a triplex and start their business, Semi Homes.
• Semi Homes helps homeowners avoid foreclosure and launched Miciano's real estate career.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Erwin Jacob Miciano, a 27-year-old real-estate investor and the owner of Semi Homes in South El Monte, California. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I'm a dedicated dad, a committed husband, a real-estate investor, and the co-owner of Semi Homes, a real-estate company specializing in direct-to-seller transactions and marketing strategies. I co-own the company with my wife, Theressa.

I don't have a college degree. I graduated from high school in 2015 and first worked at Wetzel's Pretzels. I decided to join the Navy to support my family abroad in the Philippines and my mom and brother in the US.

In March 2016, after three months of boot camp, I completed the basic training to become a photojournalist. Until September 2021, I served as a mass communication specialist, with most of my overseas years based in Japan, stationed on the USS Ronald Reagan.

I separated from the military in 2021 to pursue real estate full-time

My Navy job included writing press releases, aerial photography, videography, and printing. In later years, I was stationed at the Naval Hospital Balboa in San Diego, where we covered COVID-19, and I was deployed with USNS Mercy to San Pedro in Los Angeles during the pandemic.

I was presented with an "early out" program because of overmanning in my job, and it allowed me to complete my contract a couple of years early. I had already started my business, but leaving the military allowed me to pursue it full-time.

I also wanted to spend more time with my young family. My eldest was born in January 2020.

My wife and I met on the day I arrived on the USS Ronald Reagan in 2016

We became friends through the first-response/firefighting team, where she worked as an electrician. We also noticed each other at church services, and she invited me to her baptism ceremony, where she was baptized inside an open jet fuel tank.

Early in our relationship, we lived together in a small Japanese apartment. Then, we spent about a year doing long-distance, with me still deploying on the carrier and her based in San Diego.

After a year of dating, we got married, and soon after some vacation in the US, we discovered we were expecting our first child. During most of her pregnancy, Theressa lived alone until I got stationed in San Diego around her seventh month.

That same year, I became deeply interested in personal finance and real-estate investing, inspired by stories of blue-collar workers achieving financial freedom through real estate. I learned the most from the BiggerPockets podcasts.

We were motivated to become first-time homebuyers

We were eager to apply what we had learned and planned to use the VA loan entitlement from our military service. VA entitlement is how much lenders can lend to a veteran or active duty member without providing a down payment.

We aimed to buy a multifamily property — ideally a duplex, triplex, or fourplex — so we could live in one unit and rent the others to offset our mortgage. Today, this strategy is known as house hacking.

Being stationed in San Diego gave us a few key advantages

The housing allowance we received as military members was higher than in most US locations, boosting our household income to about $10,000-$12,000 monthly. This allowance was discontinued once we both left the military. Theressa left the Navy almost a year before I did at the end of 2020.

Second, the VA loan allowed us to buy a multifamily property with zero down payment.

Third, we included 75% of the gross rental income from the property in our loan application, increasing our approved loan amount. On paper, our monthly gross increased to $15,000-$17,000.

Finally, new legislation removed local VA loan limits for first-time users, giving us more purchasing power.

After months of searching, we found a triplex listed for $1.2 million

We offered $1 million and settled at $1.1 million. By March 2020, we had moved into a three-bedroom unit while renting out the other two for about $4,000 a month, reducing our housing costs to less than what one-bedroom rentals were going for at the time. This was the start of Semi Homes.

After living in the triplex for two years, we moved in with my mom and brother in September 2021 in the San Gabriel Valley. The triplex is now fully a rental property generating $1,500 to $2,000 monthly profit.

My day-to-day work involves meeting with homeowners who are looking for support in selling their properties

We now buy properties and resell them for a profit. We also help sellers in deep foreclosure and save them from it. My role is to get my team in front of our target audience and guide clients through the entire process, all the way to the closing table.

There are also late-night administrative hours and business-building, which I work on three to four nights a week. The biggest change from my Navy days is that I'm no longer away from my family for long periods — a small freedom I cherish.

I feel both fulfilled and successful

While Semi Homes started as a way to build wealth and achieve financial freedom for my family, it's grown into something more.

We stay in this tough business because we truly believe in the value we provide to the individuals we work with. I'm focused on building our online presence and spreading the word that foreclosing is not the only option.

I see myself in real estate for the rest of my life.

Want to share your story about getting on the property ladder? Email Lauryn Haas at [email protected].

• Dan Weiss, 79, earns up to $47 per hour on Taskrabbit assembling furniture in Minnesota.
• Weiss, a retired mortgage manager, joined Taskrabbit in 2021 for both the income and structure.
• He completes tasks almost daily, earning $3,000 to $5,000 monthly and supplementing his retirement.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Dan Weiss, a 79-year-old Tasker on Taskrabbit in Oakdale, Minnesota. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I joined Taskrabbit in 2021 and have completed nearly 1,200 tasks at around $47 per hour for my services in Ikea furniture and general furniture assembly in and around Minneapolis.

I have a bachelor's degree in business administration and management and two master's degrees. Before I retired in November 2014, I managed several residential mortgage branches for a major bank.

Retirement was fine initially, but I quickly realized I needed to add structure to my life. Now, I fill my days building furniture, meeting new people, and supplementing my retirement income.

Going from 100 MPH to zero was a very abrupt change for me

One can only do so much gardening and reading without feeling unfulfilled.

I stayed "retired" for about six months and then had to find something that gave me more enjoyment and provided additional income to avoid chipping away at all of my retirement savings, which I began saving for in my mid-40s.

Before Taskrabbit, my other part-time jobs included stints at Costco, customer service work, and driving for Uber and Lyft.

I read an article in my local newspaper about a young woman who had discovered Taskrabbit. It intrigued me, so I immediately went online to create a Tasker account and have them run a background check on me. That was completed in a matter of days, and I was ready to go.

I've now been Tasking for 3 years

I've always enjoyed assembling things, but there was a learning curve. Although I had previously worked with Ikea furniture, there was much to figure out about some of the "tricks" associated with Ikea products.

I made over $47,000 in 2023, my highest year in earnings yet. I average $3,000 to $5,000 in earnings monthly. I could live on my retirement savings if I had to, but Taskrabbit income helps.

I do tasks almost daily

I complete between one and three tasks daily, averaging about four to five days a week. Most of my tasks are no more than a half-hour away, but I spend a fair amount of time driving. I can expense the mileage and gas.

My time spent with clients is highly enjoyable. I meet people from all walks of life and find their stories interesting. I enjoy this aspect of tasking the most.

I've realized how fulfilling and also challenging retirement can be

The lack of structure and income flow in retirement is challenging. We're told to save, save, save for retirement, and that's what I did. When I made the change from saving to spending, I was mind-blown. It didn't feel comfortable or natural.

Taskrabbit has allowed me to continue to generate income while also providing structure and allowing me to maintain contact with a variety of people.

I've discovered the importance of superb reviews in growing my business

When I was young, there were no such things as digital reviews. Today, they're critical because everyone checks them before booking a service or going to a restaurant. I secure generally excellent reviews by doing the following steps:

• Always communicate openly with your client. Confirm the date and time and set expectations in advance.
• Arrive on time or slightly early. If you will be late, even by a few minutes, it's important to let them know.
• Upon arriving, be friendly and cordial. A handshake usually gets things off to a good start to establish a line of trust.
• Be efficient and ensure the task is completed properly and precisely. Having the correct tools is also mandatory for this aspect of the task.
• If there are problems such as missing or defective parts, let the client know as soon as possible and provide suggestions on how to remedy the problem so as not to add stress to their plate.
• Thank them for the work opportunity and share how they can save you as a favorite for future tasks, leave a review and, if they choose, tip you, which happens about 25-40% of the time. I'm very focused during the actual task, but if the client engages me in conversation or has questions, I stop and focus on them.

I expect to continue to task as long as the compensation is commensurate with the job

I will continue to do this as long as my body holds up.

Tasking has given me both fulfillment and help funding trips and vacations. My wife and I love Maui and intend to return soon.

I'm still in the planning phase of deciding on our next vacation destination. There are many other places that we wish to visit while we're still healthy and relatively mobile.

Are you a retiree with a side hustle who wants to share your story? Email Lauryn Haas at [email protected].