She took a leap of faith…

So much of this young woman’s story reminds me of my own, and I wanted to share it with you. I’ve heard people say it’s easier to leap when you are young, when you have time to pick up the pieces and adjust. But I hope I’m never afraid to follow my heart’s calling. I hope it’s never too late. What about you?

Please welcome guest blogger, Renee Williams:

I wanted to be a television journalist since I was twelve and was lured by the bright lights and reporters and anchors on my local stations. To make my dream come true, I went to the University of Georgia and got into journalism school. When I graduated, I took my first job in Charleston, South Carolina where I was a reporter, producer, fill-in anchor and host.

I was living the dream.

I’m not quite sure there was an exact moment where I started rethinking the path I had been on for the past decade. I guess it was a lot of little different things that added up and made me realize that my dream wasn’t much of a dream. I loved the exhilaration of being a reporter, the challenge of turning a story on deadline, the live shots, the long hours. I relished in the aspects of my job that most people would hate. Then, gradually I began to realize I no longer wanted to do those things. What used to be important, no longer was important. What used to get me excited now appalled me. My career and life were changing.

Ever since I started at my television station, I knew when my reporting contract would expire: April 30, 2010. I tucked that date into the back of my mind. It was more than a contract date; it was a goal. If I could make it to April 30, 2010, I could make it anywhere.

I started looking for jobs in November 2009. Nothing came. The only thing that came was April 2010 and I still didn’t have that next job lined up. Then I had an opportunity to stop reporting and start producing the 11 p.m. show. I took it and never looked back. I thought I would miss reporting, miss all the things that I once loved, but I didn’t.

It was around this time I realized that I had to make a change and take a leap. I told my bosses I would leave July 9, 2010, job or no job.

I cannot label this experience with one emotion; it is literally a mixed bag of different feelings that change daily. I am petrified, hopeful, excited, depressed and so many other things that would take far too long to name. I am mostly afraid because this is the first time in my life where I do not have a plan. It is the first time I have gone blindly into the next step and for a type-A personality, like myself, that is extremely unusual. I know how to plan and execute. Now I’m doing neither. That lack of focus and lack of planning is enough to stop me in my tracks, but I have to remind myself I am extremely blessed and talented, and I will find my inspiration again.

For the first time in my relatively short life, I cannot answer the question of what is next. I know I will find another job. I know I will be all right. What I do not know is how I will accomplish these things. That may be the biggest lesson I learn from taking this leap.

For those standing on the edge, I pass on the old saying “look before you leap.” Be sure whatever you are leaving behind is something that you can live without. Be sure you will not miss it. Then, after careful introspection, do it. Life is far too short to continue to do something that does not make you happy. The leap will be scary and it will take work, but in the end I hope it will pay off. I think it’s better to take a leap and flail as you go down than teeter on the edge, afraid of falling.