I Quit My Job and Moved to Hawaii

But we’ll get to that in a moment. 

In 2016, I was three years out of college and living in San Francisco, working for a boutique advertising agency in a fancy high rise with views of the water, the city, and the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance. I lived (with many roommates) in a quaint Victorian apartment with bay windows and creaky wood floors, right around the corner from Whole Foods, funky Haight Street, and the eucalyptus-scented park. I had the boyfriend. The job. The friends. From the outside, I had it all. I had “arrived.” 

But I couldn’t shake off a creeping feeling that something was missing. 

Something Was Missing in My Life

The panic attacks started a year into city life. They would happen anywhere: the bus ride home, the produce section of the grocery store, alone in my bedroom, when stepping off the bike at spin class. My chest would tighten, my heart pounded, and my vision blurred. After my diagnosis of generalized anxiety and depression, I knew a change needed to be made to preserve my mental health and sanity. But what?

I did love my job in marketing, but the long hours and demanding, fast-paced agency life was weighing on me. My moments of happiness were spent on the spin bike leading heart-pounding, music-blasting classes to sweaty rooms full of motivated individuals all riding to the same beat.

I was craving a way to make more of an impact on others through my voice and my body, rather than the computer screen. 

It took a six-week stretch of disability leave for shoulder surgery to fully convince me it was time. Terrified of not being able to work or even work out for so long—the very things I used to define myself—I sought advice from various mentors on how to spend this stretch of downtime. Learn a new language. Get your finances in order. Read a million books. Start a (non-active or arm-using) hobby. 

I knew a desire even bigger was brewing—I was going to figure out how to fulfill my childhood dream and move to Hawaii and become a full-time fitness trainer.

And when the six weeks were up, my plans were in place, bikinis packed, and plane ticket booked. I returned to work, promptly gave my two-weeks' notice, and within a month, touched down on the island of Oahu—my plumeria-scented home for the next two years.

Ask Yourself, "Why Move?"

Sometimes switching up your location is in order to shake up your career, your health, and your life trajectory. It can be daunting, I know—I lived it. My move was at times messy, filled with many sleepless air mattress nights, couch surfing rides, and penny-pinching happy hour meals. But every sandy barefoot day was worth it when I left, after my two years, more confident and mentally healthy than ever before. 

Ready for a change? Take these four steps to make your own dream move a reality. 

Talk About It—Out Loud

Dreams will forever be mere figments of your imagination until you put them into action. Instead of just scribbling in your journal—though a great place to start!—or staring wistfully out the window, talk about it. Tell people: your best friend, your hairdresser, the cashier at the grocery store. Speaking your dream out loud sets energy into motion. 

When you share your dream with others, it creates a sense of accountability. You’ve invested someone else in it besides yourself. It’s no longer a secret. When talking, you also never know who is listening. Potential connections, job openings, sage advice, and living situations have all materialized for me while in discussion with mere acquaintances and even strangers.

Giving your dream words holds the power to bring those words to life.

Do Your Research

When planning a big move—whether location-wise or career-wise or both—it is important to do your research. Even if you’re a spontaneous individual, we can all benefit from knowledge so readily available. 

Get an idea of where you want to live, specifically. What are the neighborhoods like, the housing options? How about the jobs? What is the market like, the top industries? Is there someone you can potentially interview to get an insider’s view? Do you know anyone there? And what about money? How much do you need? What is the cost of living, the average salaries in the area, and what you require to live comfortably? 

Of course, don’t forget to research the fun stuff: what are the must-do activities, the bucket list experiences, the coffee shops you’re dying to try? Let yourself grow excited over the possibilities lying in wait in your new hometown.

Make a (Loose) Plan

Plans don’t need to be perfect to be helpful, but even a loose outline is necessary to set yourself up for success and dispel fear and stress.

Think of this as your Big Dream Action Plan. Simply showing up in a new place with a few dollars in your pocket and the shoes on your feet won’t get you nearly as far as you’d like. Instead, let preparation fuel your fire—not overwhelm or discourage you.

When creating a Big Dream Action Plan, it helps to remember life’s basics: shelter, food, money. Where will you live (if only temporarily)? Do you have enough savings to float you as you job hunt, or do you need to have a position lined up? Do you need to build a nest egg first to start you off financially stable? What dollar amount are you comfortable with and how can you save for it?

When I was preparing to move to Hawaii, I knew I could live with my sister temporarily as I house-hunted. I didn’t yet have a job, but I had freelance work to get me by in the interim and a list of fitness studios to contact upon my arrival (the side gig I pursued eventually became my full-time career during my time on the island). I had an air mattress to lay my head on at night. My Big Dream Action Plan was scrappy, but it was the stepping stone I needed to launch my new chapter. 

Make Sure to Leave the Planning Stage...Eventually 

One word of caution: avoid remaining forever stuck in the research and planning phase—it can become a graveyard of unlived dreams. It is all too easy to procrastinate in the name of preparation. Instead, decide ahead of time what information you need to know to make smart moves, but know you must eventually act upon them to make it happen.

Set a deadline, and hold yourself to it.

Forego the Fear

Seeking advice, planning, and preparation can only get you so far—it’s YOU who has to book the ticket, buckle your seatbelt low and tight across your lap, and go. 

If I had a penny for every time I hear "I wish I could just move to Hawaii!" well, I’d be much more stable in my finances! The truth is, you don’t have to wish it. You CAN do it if you’re willing to put in a bit of planning and preparation, dig your hands in, and get to work. 

Start questioning what is holding you back. As one of my favorite go-getters Marie Forleo puts it, "Everything is figureoutable." This includes your dream move to Hawaii, or wherever it is.

What I Learned

I spent two beautiful, challenging, memorable, and transformational years on the island of Oahu before moving to Florida when my now-partner was restationed for the military. (Yes, we met in Hawaii!) During my time I learned how to seek healing in nature and community.

My anxiety dissipated somewhere on the island’s sandy shores and muddy hiking trails, and under 40 feet of blue water when I learned to free dive. I learned to let others in again, and not be afraid to ask for help—the friends I made there became my family, supporting me and uplifting me during the highs and lows. As they say, Ohana runs deep. 

I also learned an important lesson regarding work—I realized after two years of early wake-up calls, exhausting schedules, and minimal pay, the fitness industry was not meant to be my full-time career. Though it remains a passion of mine, I much prefer leading spin classes a couple of times a week as a hobby to complement my new marketing job.  

Moving not only fulfilled a childhood dream, but it rerouted the entire trajectory of my life. Though it may seem impossible, if you want a change, you can do it and be successful.

My Advice

Even if you’re broke. Even if you’re heartbroken. Even if you have no job. Yes, you.

Maybe you’re craving a fresh start. Maybe you just need a temporary escape. But my friend, if there is a tug on your heart, you must listen to what it is saying. Hear the deep needs of your soul. Whether it is a move to Hawaii or the city or a remote cabin in the woods, now is the time. It is never too late. 

Take the leap. Stop the wishing. Start the doing—there is a way. There is always a way.