Anniki Sommerville had been working for almost 18 years, climbing the ranks from junior employee to managing partner at a global marketing agency, when she realised she’d had enough. “I looked at other people around me, and they either seemed to be in a similar situation to me and quite miserable, or else they’d bought in to the idea that work was about very long hours, sacrificing or compromising on just about everything else in your personal life, for the sake of having a bigger house than somebody else,” she says. “I hadn’t, and I was in a real quandary.” So when the opportunity arose to take voluntary redundancy, it was the perfect time for her to experiment with other approaches to work: she started doing some writing, editing a blog and taking on consultancy work. “I slowly started discover that there were lots of things that I was good at, and that I actually enjoyed doing,” she explains.
Now a successful journalist and podcaster, Sommerville says she has “found a good equilibrium” whereby she has plenty to keep her occupied, but isn’t living solely to work. Most importantly, she has figured out her own solution rather than waiting for a job to come to her that ticks every box – advice that is at the forefront of her new book, The Big Quit, which encourages readers to take control of their own career journeys. A raw and honest guide to navigating corporate culture, it draws on Somerville’s personal experience of deciphering the world of work, as well as anecdotes from other women in challenging professional situations. With an emphasis on defining your values and prioritising your happiness, this is, in her own words, “not just a book about work, but about life”. Here, Sommerville shares advice on what to do if you’re not enjoying your job…
1/ DON’T EXPECT TOO LITTLE…
“I thought work was just about finding enough money to have a good income. I was pretty miserable in my job for quite a long time, but I pushed that feeling away. I think that’s quite a common tendency that people have, when they’re trying to keep their nose to the grindstone. ”
2/ …BUT DON’T EXPECT THINGS TO COME TO YOU ON A PLATE
“What holds us back quite often is the idea of a dream job – the idea that one day, you’ll find this idyllic set-up with flexible work hours, where you’ll get on with everybody and enjoy every day. I think that’s really unrealistic. With any job, there are some projects you’ll enjoy, and some you’ll enjoy less. Work out what energises you, what puts life into your battery and what drains you. If you’ve got enough of the energising kind of work, you’re on the right path.”
3/ SETTLE YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS TO AVOID BURNOUT
“In my old job, I was catastrophising all the time – if you find that when something goes wrong at work, you’re immediately leaping to the worst-case scenario, that’s probably a red flag. If you are in that mind-set, take a deep breath and use whatever techniques work for you: for instance, if you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night, try sitting up, grabbing a bit of paper and writing down the things that are bubbling around in your subconscious.”
JOSH SHINNER FOR HARPER’S BAZAAR
4/ BUILD YOUR OWN NETWORK
“For me, Instagram became a place where I could vent a lot of my frustration – and then I found a tribe of women who were going through similar things and could offer me support. Find someone who inspires you, or whom you respect, and sound them out about what your plans are. Treat it like an informal mentorship – they might be able to encourage you to take that step in the right direction.”
5/ PLAN AHEAD
“Start looking out for opportunities before you take the plunge and quit your job. Identify the people who might commission work so that you feel like you have some contacts up your sleeve already. And be realistic: as a freelancer, you might have to work towards financial stability, and that process might require moving out of London or downsizing, for example.”
6/ DON’T LET FEAR HOLD YOU BACK
“I was very scared of money and the idea of being in charge of a budget. One of the first things I did after taking voluntary redundancy was to write down what I needed for my family and me to survive each month – childcare, food, the mortgage, bills, everything – in order to work out the minimum I’d be able to live on. When I started freelancing, there were periods when I had a lot of work, and others when I had absolutely nothing – and, of course, things would always come in at the last minute. Sometimes it’s a feast and sometimes it’s a famine – with freelancing, you have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
7/ MAKE FLEXIBLE WORKING WORK FOR YOU
“None of us can do good-quality work when we’re knackered and resentful. If you’re a parent, block out when you’re going to do the school run, and don’t apologise for it. I think we’re moving to a model for everybody where as long as you get the work done, people are not going to comment on you being away from your laptop for an hour. Find the pockets of time that make sense for you.”
8/ DON’T BE YOUR OWN WORST ENEMY
“The most important lesson I’ve learnt is to manage my own inner critic, because I think we’re often the ones sabotaging ourselves. As women, we have a lot to deal with already – the gender pay gap, the high price of childcare and so on – but if you’ve also got an internalised voice telling you you’re not good enough, that isn’t going to help you. Women who are really successful are good at giving positive ‘self-talk’ so that they no longer feel disabled by the kind of insecurity a lot of us carry with us. If you can find the tools to manage that, you’re onto a winning streak.”
From Harper’s Bazaar UK
