“You have the potential to go so far in this business.”

The consultant was a bigwig from New York; our television station flew him in a few times a year to critique our on-air talent, which I was a part of, and to break the sometimes painful news about things we needed to change.

Hair, makeup, hand gesture, facial expression, voice, delivery, wardrobe, you name it—I had heard it whispered about in the break room between tears sometimes from fellow TV reporters: “He told me I should try and avoid wearing green, and my voice needs to be deeper.”

So when he looked across the table when the video montage of me reporting paused and said the line my heart broke.

You see, I didn’t want to go far in that business. I was already dreaming up something with flowers and staying up late trying to build a website and come up with a name, and it was so exciting to me. Why flowers? I couldn’t really answer it. I just knew. When I worked with the flowers, time stopped. I was happy beyond words, and it satisfied something in me.

Eighteen months after that meeting, I left the TV station to flower full time.

I carried so many emotions, my friend. So many. Happy. Scared. Overjoyed. Terrified. Sad. Overwhelmed. All of it. But it was ultimately, absolutely the right decision.

Leaving a well-established and promising career to process hundreds of roses and design wedding flowers may not “make sense” to some, but I’m a fan of a life that doesn’t color inside the lines. You are, too, I imagine. Here are some of my tips.

HAVE A PLAN

Throwing your papers into the sky and skipping out of the office building with no warning is nice in the movies. But creating a well-thought-out and planned exit strategy is both responsible and makes it a lot easier on your family financially. I worked both jobs for two full years. 2 FULL YEARS. I would flower on weekends and report the news on weekday mornings. You can do it. Promise.

HAVE SUPPORT—BUT REALIZE IT’LL BE WEIRD FOR PEOPLE

People still stop me in the grocery store asking why they fired me because they cannot for the life of them imagine someone willingly leaving such a “glamorous” job. The reaction from people will be weird. Some people will be your biggest cheerleaders. Some will not understand it. Give people time and realize a lot of anger stems from jealousy. I always say if there are a couple of people who love you are on your side, you can do it. Dogs count too.

AVOID CRAZY DEBT

This is a controversial topic so I’ll keep this short. If you can, operating your flower business with zero debt will make leaping into the world of self-employment so much easier. The pressure is way less. This means growing slowly, this means waiting for things, this means used minivans, but this does not mean your design work is anything less than beautiful.

WHAT YOU “DID” ISN’T GOING ANYWHERE

There are still TV reporters out there. There are still teachers and nurses and accountants and marketing specialists and IT people. The job you are leaving, the career you studied for, it isn’t going anywhere. So if it all implodes (it won't) you can go back. Remember this: Flowering isn’t a life sentence, it’s a gift.

I cannot wait to watch this happen for you!