There have been many stories in the news lately about how many people are quitting across the country. And yet some dissatisfied with their job still hesitate to even look for a better, more fulfilling position, fearing it will be difficult to land on their feet once they cut ties.

Such change can be scary, but it can also be very rewarding. The Wall Street Journal recently featured anecdotes from workers who have done this successfully and wanted to share their wisdom.

30-year-old Corina Plitt cautions against being too impulsive and recommends building yourself up financially so you have some breathing room.

She explains how the troubles of the pandemic already had her forgoing expenses on activities like vacations, so she was able to save up to take time off and figure out what she wanted to do.

Some might balk at the idea of leaving without another position already assured, but experts believe this is not as much of a taboo as workers think.

Anthony Klotz, who works as an associate management professor at Texas A&M University, says, “Fears over a résumé gap are largely overblown today.” Klotz is the one who created the phrase “Great Resignation” to describe the droves that have quit over the last two years.

Especially given current circumstances in the world, Klotz feels a resume gap will not hurt you as much as you have been led to believe.

31-year-old Bogdan Zlatkov also recommends using your time with your current job to develop the skills you want to use in the future. In his case, he wanted to pivot careers from videography into content marketing but did not start applying for the latter until after he had already quit.

That was something he considers a big error, as his savings dwindled while he spent 14 months trying to make that transition. Even if you plan to take a career gap, you can still use your remaining time at your current job to check out applications and build on the skills you will need down the road.

The unifying theme in the success stories is preparation. Laying the groundwork for your next avenue before you quit will spare you a lot of stress trying to figure things out on the fly.

For more stories on how to get into better work after quitting, see what the Wall Street Journal reported here.

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