Why leaving the job I loved became the right decision.
I didn’t know it then, but race day in Atlanta would be one of the very last times I’d ever wear the brown uniform.
When I joined UPS during Covid, I expected it to be short-term – a way to pay the bills while I looked for another position in my field. I only became a full-time driver because it offered more hours and better pay than working part-time in the warehouse did.
Then something unexpected happened: I fell in love with the work.
After struggling for a while with what being a UPS driver meant for my personal and professional identity, I enthusiastically embraced the role.
The hours were long and hard, but I felt fulfilled. After four years I made it to Top Rate in the pay progression. Thenceforth I could count on making decent money.
As long as there was enough work to go around, that is.
The problem was that, for lower-seniority drivers like me, there wasn’t always enough work to go around. I was nearly laid off in 2024, laid off for twelve weeks in 2025, and laid off again in early 2026 when my local facility was shuttered permanently as part of a companywide downsizing effort.
When my warehouse closed I returned to the larger UPS facility on the other side of town. In this new (old) building, my seniority now placed me at 161st of 200 drivers. After more than five years of driving for UPS, I was still much closer to the bottom of the list than the top.
I was feeling even less hopeful about my prospects this year. There were just way too many drivers for the routes going out each day. As I watched the industry change – including Amazon’s ongoing transformation from delivery customer to competitor – I found myself wondering: how long would this layoff last? And how long before I’d be laid off again?
Also: I keep getting older.
Working part-time shifts in the warehouse at odd hours was that much tougher on my body. Could I survive the physical toll of a long layoff? Or several? And what were the odds of my being sidelined long-term – or permanently – before reaching retirement age?
Meanwhile, at the same time my future at UPS was becoming less certain, another possibility had been quietly taking shape.
For months I’d been talking with my good friend Dave about the little voice I’d been hearing. The one telling me that maybe I had other gifts yet to offer the world besides moving boxes.
With everything going on in my life, I’d been reflecting on my past and future. I realized that what brought me the most joy at work remained pretty constant across the varied jobs and careers I’d had.
That constant is listening.
I love to listen. I love to watch someone’s eyes light up when they share. Those moments watching them come alive are when I feel most alive.
Listening is something I do wherever I go, whomever I’m with. I listen when I’m on the clock; I listen when I’m off the clock. My entire life, people have loved talking with me. They quickly discover that I love listening to them.
In a world increasingly filled with clamor and distraction, the greatest gift I have to offer is my attention.
Even as a UPS driver, what people seemed to appreciate most about me isn’t what I did, but who I am – my mere presence.
And I appreciated it back.
Dave and I have been friends for years, having clicked almost immediately after we started working together. Our conversations usually go deep very quickly, and remain there with little discomfort.
The conversation we’d been having over and over again for months went something like this.
- Me: ‘I’d love to earn a living just listening to people.’
- Dave: ‘Get your counseling degree, Martin! I’m telling you, you’d make a great counselor.’
- Me: ‘I want to, but I just can’t see how. I don’t have that kind of money, and I don’t want to go into debt over it.’
- Dave: ‘Just apply, Martin. Just take that next step and see where it takes you.’
Then something happened that overcame all my inertia.
In February, UPS offered all its full-time U.S. drivers a buyout. Even after taxes, the amount would be more than enough to pay for an online master’s program in counseling.
I wanted to make sure I understood exactly what the deal was. I studied all the paperwork; it went on for pages and pages. I made a list of pros and cons. I conferred with the people I respected and trusted most.
I also started researching online counseling programs. At my age, my time is as precious as my money. I wanted a path to my next career that was both direct and affordable. One program stood out above all the others.
A few days after my marathon in Atlanta, I applied for the buyout and to that program.
Neither application was a sure thing. I had to wait several weeks to hear back from both places about whether I was accepted. I didn’t really have a backup plan in case either was denied. As it turned out, I didn’t need one.
My last day at UPS was April 26th; school started May 4th. It wasn’t easy, but I completed two courses in my first eight-week term. I’m two weeks into my second term, and I haven’t regretted my decision for a second.
