I Left the Classroom and Made $30,000 in Two Weeks
I was smiling so hard my cheeks were starting to hurt.
After some negotiating, I’d just opened the email with my updated offer letter for my new role. In that moment, I was making $60,000 a year. Just two weeks later, I’d be starting a more senior role at a new organization, earning more than $90,000 a year.
When I left the classroom eight months earlier, this kind of money wasn't even on my radar. My current role – the first job I'd landed after teaching – paid $60,000 a year. I hadn't even known enough to negotiate my salary when I accepted it, likely underselling myself by thousands of dollars.
I'd taught special education for about nine years before accepting that role. I had an undergraduate degree in communications, but the bulk of my career had been spent in the classroom. I'm a water sign who has to be passionate about my work, or else I just can't do it.
I'd accepted teaching as my purpose and my way of doing impactful work in this world. I'd accepted the ever-growing laundry list of downsides that came along with it as part of the job – the price I'd have to pay for doing mission-driven work.
Fast-forward eight months, and I was a Program Director at a growing nonprofit organization. I was leading teams, designing programs, directing communications strategy, building content calendars, and traveling for conferences and workshops.
Not to mention, I was able to use the bathroom when I needed to, eat when I wanted to, work from home most days, and wasn't writing reports or grading papers on nights, weekends, or holidays.
Somewhere along the way, the woman who left the classroom eight months earlier had grown and stretched. I hadn't just gotten a new job— I had learned new skills and developed interests in different roles. I realized that I wasn't starting over. I was bringing years of experience, leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills with me. I didn't have to choose between doing mission-driven work and earning a higher wage. Why couldn't I take what I'd learned and use it to move forward in my career?
I updated my resume and began applying for new roles, except this time, I knew the skills I brought to the table and had strategies to network, apply, and interview for roles at companies aligned with where I hoped to go. A few weeks later, I was looking at an offer for a more senior role at another aligned organization, making more money than I'd ever made in my life.
That's the kind of growth we all deserve. The kind that helps us recognize our value, expand our options, and challenge what we thought was possible.
You can have that too.
That's why I'm building The Exit Year Playbook™.
In it, I'll share everything I've learned to help you build a play-by-play game plan to make your exit from the classroom into a role that aligns with the future you desire.
Join the waitlist now and be the first to know when it drops!
