Many who know me probably learn at some point that I am a quitter and proud. Over my life, I have had more jobs than boyfriends, and most of them are not remotely related to one another.

Now hear me out; this article’s purpose is not to encourage people to quit their jobs. I love to work and have loved most of my jobs, but there is no reason I need to spend all four years of college working the same part-time job.

I am in college doing exactly what I want: studying English and working for a newspaper that I am extremely passionate about, but does that mean I should stop searching or trying to experience different things?

Too often I hear, “what do you want to do with your life?” It’s a valid question, but it is ridiculous to think that the answer won’t change a thousand times.

I can barely decide what to wear each morning, much less what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. So to combat this problem, I made it a mission of mine to try a little bit of everything. I was going to become a modern renaissance man.

So far, I have been a nanny, an ice cream scooper, a host, a barista, a managing editor, and most recently, a first mate/ tour guide. Some of these jobs I worked at for four months and some for two years. There is no real rhyme or reason to it.

It is a wild list of jobs, but I am thankful for my experience at each of them; I have learned a lot because of them.

My antics were not without inspiration, though.

Another thing about me is that I love Benjamin Franklin. Before becoming the Ambassador to France, he was the publisher of the Pennsylvania Gazette.

He also invented bifocals and the first subscription library. Many people hope to accomplish merely one achievement like this within their lifetime.

The world too often limits us in all that we can achieve. We are told to fit into specific categories and check off boxes when we are truly capable of so much more.

There is no reason we shouldn’t be out in the world trying to learn as much as possible while we have the freedom to do so.

I want to clarify how I go about doing this. Like most college students, I am flying by the seat of my pants, working paycheck to paycheck, hoping I have enough to pay rent. So, it is not very often that I have the mobility to live without having a job.

Thus, I have rules in place to give me the freedom to quit and still be able to eat dinner:

Number 1: Always have another job lined up before you plan on making your great escape

Number 2: Quitting should not be a rash decision…meaning make sure there is enough in your bank account to cover you for a couple of weeks.

Number 3: Give your job a two weeks notice (its respectful to your soon-to-be former employers)

Number 4: Leave on good terms with your boss because you never know if you could need that job again.

Follow these rules, and you should be alright. There are a couple of warnings I should add to this. I do not recommend leaving a job that will gear you towards your hopeful future. While I may work other jobs, I do not plan on giving my two weeks to the Inkwell anytime soon.

The other important thing to remember is that right now the job market is very friendly to us because  everyone is hiring, so I am given the mobility to explore jobs. However, when jobs are hard to find, I will stick with the ones I have.

Many people will read this and think I’m unreliable or flakey, but that is not true. I am simply exploring all my options.

I will leave you with this last little bit of advice. If you want to try this, treat your employers well and work hard to get the most out of your experience.