Woman who quit teaching for job at Costco says life is now 'much better'

01 February 2023 , 16:48

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A woman who had been working as a teacher for eight years decided to give it all up for a job at Costco, stating that her work had left her exhausted to the point of being physically sick during her breaks. According to former teacher Maggie Perkins, there were aspects of her teaching career that she enjoyed, but she ended up getting 'burned out' over time due to the many stresses of the role.

In a TikTok video that has since gone viral, Maggie stated that she now feels 'happy' leaving work because she enjoys her job, and colleagues, and generally feels 'good about [her] job'. Back when she was a teacher, she only ever felt good leaving for the day because she was leaving to go home.

In a clip that has clocked up more than 54.2K likes and counting, Maggie, who goes by the username @millennialmsfrizzle, revealed why she has absolutely no regrets about leaving teaching.

Beaming from ear to ear, Maggie said: "I used to be a teacher and now I work at Costco. This is my first-ever year not having a winter break and how do I feel? I feel great."

Maggie then went on to detail some of the positives of her new role, including 'zero stress', more respect, and no sleepless nights fretting about emails from parents. In comparison, during her years as a teacher, she spent most of the time 'waiting for the other shoe to drop', and trying not to do anything wrong.

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Woman who quit teaching for job at Costco says life is now 'much better'

Maggie is now far less stressed at work (Fox)

She added: "I mean, I just worked seven days straight [at Costco], including Christmas Eve, and I feel fine. As a teacher, it was like I was just surviving every moment. By the time I got to Christmas break, I was so exhausted that I was literally sick.

"I can't believe that I ever felt so limited that I ever thought that I couldn't do something else. I am better now than I have been in my liveable memory."

In the caption, Maggie clarified that there were aspects of the teaching job she enjoyed, but the role involved 'so much more than teaching', leaving her at the end of her tether.

Many of Maggie's followers applauded her for taking what was evidently the right decision for her while agreeing that teachers in general should be far better treated by the education system.

One person commented: "I left a great paying job for one where I make half the rate. Never been happier. I actually started living again."

Another wrote: "I felt this. I just retired from law enforcement after 26 years and I have a normal job now and I'm the happiest I've ever been. Happy for you!"

Detailing her decision during an interview with Fox News, Maggie explained: "There's a term called job creep, which is when additional duties are slowly assigned to you, and then those duties are never relieved from you.

"And over time, it causes you to be burned out from the first reason you became a teacher, which is loving the students, loving teaching. And then they, you know, remind you [to] remember your why and remember your passion.

"But my passion couldn't pay my bills, and my passion couldn't help me sleep at night when I was always waiting for the other shoe to drop."

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