. Many of those callers were considering their own Big Quit, but they weren't sure whether they could do it, or how to go about it.Schlesinger says questions about switching jobs with a view to achieving better work-life balance aren't unheard of in the personal finance world, but they became a lot more common during the pandemic. She describes herself as inundated.
"I would say to people, you're just starting out. Here's what you have to do: You need an emergency reserve fund, you need to pay off your debt, and you need to try to put money into retirement. And I would often give those things equal weight." Schlesinger says COVID-19 put end-of-life considerations onto the front burner for a lot of people. She heard an especially painful story from one caller, who told her about a blowup over a family business."Someone died and there was a small business involved and there was no instruction. Like, 'what are we doing with this business? Well, dad would've wanted us to keep it, but mom really needs the money.
The big barrier to making change — even when it seems the obvious choice — is fear. But the way Schlesinger sees it, the pandemic forced change on a large number of people. And they had to face those fears.