I went from school principal to Anthropologie employee. The step down was exactly what I needed.

Renee Devore works at Anthropologie.

Courtesy of Renee Devore Renee Devore spent 25 years in education before realizing she couldn't keep going.

Devore quit without another career or a partner to financially support her.

Working at Anthropologie gave her space to figure out who she was without her title.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Renee Devore .

It has been edited for length and clarity.

In 2022, I was working in Anthropologie in the mall when a woman approached me, looking surprised, and asked me why I was working in retail.

She recognized me from my previous life as the principal at her child's school.

"I'm not a principal anymore," I told her, smiling.

I had worked in education for 25 years before I decided to give it up to pursue what was next, not knowing what that next was.

I followed my dad's footsteps Growing up, my dad was a teacher.

A there weren't many other options I knew of when it came to the career I would have, I decided to follow in his footsteps.

By 21, I had graduated from college and started teaching.

Within three years, I wanted to try something else other than teaching, feeling it wasn't right for me.