To the Mom Who Wants to Give Up...

I received an anonymous post request from a mom who said she is giving up on the job hunt. She hasn't been able to find anything, is tired of scams and is fed up.

I understand where she's coming from. It's a place of despair and frustration.

But to be honest, it's also a better place than you think.

If you have the ability to be able to quit on a job search, it means you probably have income coming from somewhere. Whether it's your husband's income, help from family, or some kind of assistance, if you CAN stop looking, it means you have someone taking care of you in some capacity. See the silver lining in that. I'm not saying you have to stay there, but see it. Seeing this will help you from feeling utterly alone and going to the dark place.

The second reason why feeling like giving up can lead you to your next breakthrough is because it means you'll stop the frantic hunt and start thinking about what you really want to do in this life.

If I were you, I'd start thinking about what I wanted to do when I was 9 or 12. What did you want to do before people starting tell you what the right thing to do was?

Start a jewelry business? Write a book? Have a radio show?

Do that in the simplest way you can with no pressure. Start making bracelets. Start writing. Start the podcast.

Don't do it to get popular or get sales, just do it out of pure enjoyment and love. People respond to that.

Start making something that you'd love to make even if you never made a sale. Start writing about the thing you've always wanted to write about. Do it just for you. I'm telling you, so many of the biggest success stories come out of people who were just acting on a dream.

Use that "I don't care anymore" and start showing up on social media as yourself, where you are now. Make meaningful connections that aren't based on what you can get or what people can do for you. Get involved in your community and find where you can be of service. Chances are, there are people in a rougher situation you are in who could use help or friendship from someone like you.

Use this time of not caring to experiment and break out of your routine without expectation.

My best ideas have come out of rock bottom. That place of "what do I do now?" When I've lost everything and had to start over.

The bottom line is that there are ways to make money online. There are call centers, there is Outschool, there are industries like personal assisting and eBook formatting that you can learn how to do and then break into via UpWork and Fiverr. There are courses that help you learn how to do UpWork and Fiverr well. Nothing is coming easy these days. People are doing those every single day but they take time and hard work.

But if you're done. And feeling like you can't do it anymore, that's ok. Like I've said, I've been there.

Go back to your first love. Find your joy again. Start there and choose one thing to do from a place of joy. Keep it simple.

That's my advice. It's ok to give up. But when you're ready, stand up again. And this time, lead from the heart.