Prince Harry: Quit Your Job, Who Cares; Money Is Fake

Who, day and night, must scramble for a living, feed a wife and children, promote his mental health? And who has the right, as royal family son, to tell people to quit their jobs? Prince Harry ... Prince Harry! … BetterUp!

I thought that worked pretty well even though thematically there’s no connection. Anyway, Prince Harry’s in the news again. The young multi-millionaire participated in an interview with Fast Company in his capacity as “chief impact officer” for the mental health-focused startup BetterUp. What does a job like that entail? Well, several things, Harry explains: “guiding BetterUp’s social mission and impact,” for one. “Driving advocacy and awareness for mental fitness,” for another. And, uh, what else do we have here … “influencing the vision of BetterUp’s platform”? Is that doing anything for you?

Regardless, the job must be something he loves, because Prince Harry — who recently quit his job as senior royal family member — spent a good portion of the interview expressing optimism at the fact that the pandemic encouraged many to leave the jobs that were making them miserable. “I’ve actually discovered recently, courtesy of a chat with [BetterUp science board member] Adam Grant,” he said, “that a lot of the job resignations you mention aren’t all bad.” He continued:

“In fact, it is a sign that with self-awareness comes the need for change. Many people around the world have been stuck in jobs that didn’t bring them joy, and now they’re putting their mental health and happiness first. This is something to be celebrated.”

Thank you, relatable king (prince). And it’s true that if a job makes you want to die every day, it would be better for your mental health to quit. And why not, when there’s a whole world of opportunity out there for you to enjoy? You can create content for Spotify or Netflix. You can start nebulously focused content production foundation. You can figure out something to do with Oprah, I’m sure. You’ll get at least a few million for your memoir. And while you’re figuring it all out, I have no doubt Tyler Perry would love to put you up (with security detail) in one of the houses he’s not currently using.

Remember this advice, as it comes from a trustworthy and uncynical source: If your work doesn’t “bring you joy,” stop doing it. Let them take break!