[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":329},["ShallowReactive",2],{"selected-posts":3},[4,156],{"_path":5,"_dir":6,"_draft":7,"_partial":7,"_locale":8,"title":9,"description":10,"slug":11,"date":12,"readTime":13,"series":14,"location":15,"draft":7,"body":16,"_type":150,"_id":151,"_source":152,"_file":153,"_stem":154,"_extension":155},"\u002Fposts\u002Fleaving-in-the-dark","posts",false,"","Leaving in the dark","A reflective piece about leaving London in the dark, finding stillness in an airport lounge at sunrise, and beginning a new chapter with more movement than certainty.","leaving-in-the-dark","2025-06-01","5 min read","The Leap","NBO",{"type":17,"children":18,"toc":142},"root",[19,28,34,39,44,49,54,60,65,70,75,80,85,90,96,101,106,111,117,122,127,132,137],{"type":20,"tag":21,"props":22,"children":24},"element","h3",{"id":23},"the-night-before",[25],{"type":26,"value":27},"text","The Night Before",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":30,"children":31},"p",{},[32],{"type":26,"value":33},"There’s something surreal about leaving a life behind in the dark.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":35,"children":36},{},[37],{"type":26,"value":38},"No final sunrise. 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Just momentum.",{"type":20,"tag":21,"props":55,"children":57},{"id":56},"a-soft-landing-before-takeoff",[58],{"type":26,"value":59},"A Soft Landing Before Takeoff",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":61,"children":62},{},[63],{"type":26,"value":64},"I’d booked a Business Class ticket using a mix of credit card points and airline vouchers. I wouldn't usually pay for that kind of comfort. But this wasn’t a holiday squeezed between meetings or a quick reset before going back to the same routine. It felt like a real departure, and I wanted to mark it as one.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":66,"children":67},{},[68],{"type":26,"value":69},"What that meant, I wasn’t entirely sure. 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Just about.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":86,"children":87},{},[88],{"type":26,"value":89},"That moment stayed with me because it was the first time leaving felt real. Behind me was the chaos of packing up my life. Ahead of me was something I couldn’t fully name yet.",{"type":20,"tag":21,"props":91,"children":93},{"id":92},"the-shape-of-the-trip",[94],{"type":26,"value":95},"The Shape of the Trip",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":97,"children":98},{},[99],{"type":26,"value":100},"I had the outline of a plan: a few solo days in Nairobi, a safari with friends from London, Uganda for a wedding, then the coast, and eventually my 30th birthday with my sister. Not mapped out to the hour, but intentional enough.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":102,"children":103},{},[104],{"type":26,"value":105},"I also had a friend in Kenya who made the transition softer than I expected. 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Just the decision to go.",{"title":8,"searchDepth":143,"depth":143,"links":144},2,[145,147,148,149],{"id":23,"depth":146,"text":27},3,{"id":56,"depth":146,"text":59},{"id":92,"depth":146,"text":95},{"id":113,"depth":146,"text":116},"markdown","content:posts:leaving-in-the-dark.md","content","posts\u002Fleaving-in-the-dark.md","posts\u002Fleaving-in-the-dark","md",{"_path":157,"_dir":6,"_draft":7,"_partial":7,"_locale":8,"title":158,"description":159,"slug":160,"date":161,"readTime":162,"series":14,"location":163,"draft":7,"body":164,"_type":150,"_id":326,"_source":152,"_file":327,"_stem":328,"_extension":155},"\u002Fposts\u002Fwhy-i-quit-my-job","Why I Quit My Job","On leaving a comfortable role at Goldman Sachs to build something that mattered, and what it feels like to step off a path everyone else said made sense.","why-i-quit-my-job","2025-05-01","4 min read","LDN",{"type":17,"children":165,"toc":320},[166,171,176,181,186,192,197,202,208,213,218,223,229,234,239,244,250,255,260,265,270,275,280,285,290,295,300,305,310,315],{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":167,"children":168},{},[169],{"type":26,"value":170},"For years, the idea of quitting lingered in the background.\nIt started quietly, thoughts that showed up between meetings, on walks, during holidays when I finally felt like myself again.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":172,"children":173},{},[174],{"type":26,"value":175},"At my job, I’d grown a lot, technically and as a leader but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was meant to be building something I believed in. Something that felt like mine.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":177,"children":178},{},[179],{"type":26,"value":180},"I didn’t have a product yet. Or a cofounder. But I had the belief that if I gave myself space, I’d find it. And that was enough to get serious about planning my exit.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":182,"children":183},{},[184],{"type":26,"value":185},"And so I began saving intentionally.",{"type":20,"tag":21,"props":187,"children":189},{"id":188},"saving-for-the-unknown",[190],{"type":26,"value":191},"Saving for the Unknown",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":193,"children":194},{},[195],{"type":26,"value":196},"Roughly two years before I left, I got serious about saving. I tracked my monthly spending and created a budget that assumed I’d still be paying rent and living as comfortably as I had been. I didn’t want my freedom to feel like scarcity.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":198,"children":199},{},[200],{"type":26,"value":201},"My goal was at least twelve months of runway. Not just survival money, but a realistic budget for travel, creativity, and exploration without needing to earn right away.",{"type":20,"tag":21,"props":203,"children":205},{"id":204},"priming-nigerian-parents-a-masterclass-in-messaging",[206],{"type":26,"value":207},"Priming Nigerian Parents: A Masterclass in Messaging",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":209,"children":210},{},[211],{"type":26,"value":212},"You can’t just tell Nigerian parents you’re quitting your job “to find yourself.”",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":214,"children":215},{},[216],{"type":26,"value":217},"So I eased them into it.\nTalked about burnout. Framed it as a strategic break. Highlighted my financial plan. Introduced the idea of starting something new.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":219,"children":220},{},[221],{"type":26,"value":222},"They didn’t fully understand the decision, but they saw that I had a plan. 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They’re  with Andrew, the one who first introduced me to HiFi.",{"type":20,"tag":21,"props":245,"children":247},{"id":246},"the-plan-loosely-speaking",[248],{"type":26,"value":249},"The Plan (Loosely Speaking)",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":251,"children":252},{},[253],{"type":26,"value":254},"This wasn’t a one-way trip.\nI planned to spend six weeks in Nairobi, timed around a friend’s wedding in Uganda—and my 30th birthday. I’d heard great things about the startup scene and wanted to experience it for myself.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":256,"children":257},{},[258],{"type":26,"value":259},"After Kenya, the plan was Jamaica, another month away, this time hoping my naturalisation would be sorted by then. And then Paris for another friend’s wedding.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":261,"children":262},{},[263],{"type":26,"value":264},"There were multiple anchors, but also space in between. Space to wander. To reset.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":266,"children":267},{},[268],{"type":26,"value":269},"It wasn’t a perfect itinerary. But it was enough to move forward.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":271,"children":272},{},[273],{"type":26,"value":274},"This Series: What to Expect",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":276,"children":277},{},[278],{"type":26,"value":279},"This post kicks off a new thread on this Substack.",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":281,"children":282},{},[283],{"type":26,"value":284},"The Leap is about:",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":286,"children":287},{},[288],{"type":26,"value":289},"What it means to leave a stable path",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":291,"children":292},{},[293],{"type":26,"value":294},"Resting with intention",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":296,"children":297},{},[298],{"type":26,"value":299},"Startup exploration in East Africa and the Caribbean",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":301,"children":302},{},[303],{"type":26,"value":304},"Life between airports, weddings, and weird WiFi",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":306,"children":307},{},[308],{"type":26,"value":309},"The people who soften your landing",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":311,"children":312},{},[313],{"type":26,"value":314},"And the rediscovery that happens in the pause",{"type":20,"tag":29,"props":316,"children":317},{},[318],{"type":26,"value":319},"Thanks for being here.",{"title":8,"searchDepth":143,"depth":143,"links":321},[322,323,324,325],{"id":188,"depth":146,"text":191},{"id":204,"depth":146,"text":207},{"id":225,"depth":146,"text":228},{"id":246,"depth":146,"text":249},"content:posts:why-i-quit-my-job.md","posts\u002Fwhy-i-quit-my-job.md","posts\u002Fwhy-i-quit-my-job",1780237720485]