Mike Lewis gave up a well-paying job as a futures investor to chase his dream of becoming a squash pro. He hopes his book When to Jump will give others permission to take a leap.
Only Mike's closest friends knew about his dream. He says he'd mention it here and there at family gatherings, but felt guilty and selfish at the thought of telling his parents.
"Hey, I know you helped get me to university and supported me through all the things I wanted to do in my life. Now I have the chance to give back perhaps and have some security for myself and my family and I'm thinking of leaving to go and play professional squash, which doesn't exactly make a lot of money."
On one hand, working in venture capital was a dream job – "It was comfortable, it was safe, I had visibility into what it would look like years down the road if I stuck with it."
But the little voice in his head kept telling him there was a "small and shrinking window" in which to chase his dream.
Every jump starts with this little voice, Mike says.
So how do you know when it's worth listening to?
"If there's something you're thinking about doing, big or small – it could be a hobby on nights and weekends, it could be a total career change, it could be moving offices or departments – if you've got a nudge of what you want to do, write it down, get a bit more serious about what that would look like. What are the steps to make that happen? Are there financial risks? Do you have to save money? If so, how much? Are there experts you can chat with? And, finally, how can you experiment without having to leave all-in?"
The next step is talking to people, he says.
"If you can shadow someone at work or if you can get coffee or go have a beer after work with someone who has experience doing what you're thinking about that will help you understand if that's something you even want to do."
Mike Lewis Photo: supplied
Mike gathered the stories of 44 others who made similar leaps in the book.
He's aware privilege made his own jump less risky than it may be for people with lower incomes, families and mortgages.
"It helps when you have a steady job and a paycheck but that shouldn't be the excuse to not jump if you don't have those things."
After walked around thinking he was crazy to even think seriously about chasing a squash career, a friend's father (who Mike believed took an objective view) reminded him that crazy doesn't always equate to stupid.
"It took this acquaintance to give me permission. And I hope now my book is the permission for other people to jump.
"If you plan right, you think through it, you create a safety net, you talk to folks, you can actually be on the right side of that – you can be crazy but not stupid."
When to Jump is also a podcast and an online community.
