Record numbers of American workers are quitting their jobs and, if a survey report by Microsoft is even close to capturing the current state of workers, 41% of the global workforce is thinking about making a change.

“With so much change upending people over the past year, employees are re-evaluating priorities, home bases, and their entire lives,” notes the Microsoft survey study “The Next Great Disruption Is Hybrid Work—Are We Ready?”

It’s easy to say people should take risks and pursue their passions. We know how important it is to live our values and take occasional leaps of faith. We’ve learned that when there is regret toward the end of life it usually revolves around the risks not taken in life and at work.

Yet in the rush of everyday life, the accumulation of responsibilities to children and partners, the bills that need to be paid, and the many demands on our incomes, it’s also easy to defer dreams and ambitions until tomorrow.

The social isolation we endured during the pandemic changed the traditional wait-until-tomorrow position of many people. They had time to think about their lives, what they’re doing, what they’d like to do more and what they no longer want to do.

We also shared a heightened sense of our mortality. Household finances improved for those who were able to work throughout the pandemic. With limited outlets for consumer spending, more income went into boosting savings and paying down debts.

That said, transitions are rarely easy. Experimentation and learning are in the nature of transitions. As baseball legend Yogi Berra famously quipped, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

In personal finance, devising a household budget helps you get through the transition period. There is no shortage of budgeting templates online or at the bookstore. Personally, I’ve found tracking household incomes and expenses with a notebook and pen the most satisfying.

Whatever tool you use, the data is invaluable. It will help you decide the practicality of your next job, career or lifestyle choice (or a combination of the three) if it involves earning less money, which is often the case.

If you are thinking about making a major change at work or in your life, test your ideas out with friends, colleagues and people you know and admire.

Tap into the power of community conversation to increase the odds of success in your next endeavor.