I posted something similar a few months ago, and received some great replies. I'm in a slightly different situation, needing slightly different advice, with MUCH more detail given, so this post will be packaged differently. Sorry about the rambling in advance. Hopefully it comes across coherently, which is my goal.
24, almost 25. Worked retail the past 5 years (also worked various side jobs and went to school full time during some of these years to build investments). Currently @ $15/hr with commission (closer to $16.5/hr, about $14k gross yearly) working part time only 2 days a week (boss is extremely flexible and has always been good to me). I consider this very good money for where I live given my limited responsibilities. Live in a very LCOL area (rural NC) with parents. Have MIS degree. Have about $25k in passive income, maybe more. No debt obviously.
I'm really at a standstill with things. I have nothing to complain about, yet I'm unhappy. I have zero interest in my job and besides the social interaction I'd otherwise definitely not get, I feel like I've accomplished nothing at the end of the day. Things are just too easy other than dealing with customers and repeating the same tasks over and over and hearing the same things from the same unambitious manager for the past 5 years. All the newbies (which we cycle through fairly frequently) get stuck with doing the truly busy work and stuff so I've definitely earned my keep there. If I go full time, I almost gross $40k which isn't bad considering I currently have zero housing expense, and much of my food here is subsidized.
I want more out of life, obviously. I'm obviously not happy where I am. The problem is, is the grass really greener? If I move to a HCOL area which is where I want to be, I'll be paying $1k+ in rent. Which means my salary will need to be more like $60k to keep the same savings rate I am now. I just don't see this as being possible starting out, if it happens at all. I am working on my coding/front end web development skills but it just seems like a daunting task living so far away from where the opportunities are and thinking about moving. I can always come back, sure, but I'll lose my "cushy" retail job setup of course. I need exposure to get motivated! There is none of that around here (where I live).
Mom says I've become lazy, which I don't totally agree with. Yes, I'm doing relatively A LOT less than I was 5 years ago, but I'm also in a better position than I was 5 years ago and I feel almost like I'm "past" worrying about trivial things. I also feel like I'm "past" studying and working my way up since I put so much effort into getting to the position I'm at now. I know I'm not past advancing myself in any way shape or form, but it just feels like it since I'm burnt out of working so hard already. Simple things seem daunting now since I have so many choices.
So I guess the options are: move, accept less money in the beginning, but potentially be much happier and have more room for advancement OR stay in the relatively great position I'm in now. One thing hurting me is the position of "power". I feel like I have the power to make a change when I'm working, even though I hate the place and the job itself. If I straight up quit, that power is gone and I have no one to turn to but myself. This could be a good thing in a way, forcing me to make (try) better moves.
I've "soft" quit a few times already. Every time it came time to actually leave, I caved and stayed since I couldn't stand the thought of not having that extra income and being uncertain about the future. I just felt like I'd be missing out. It doesn't help that I'm extremely introverted and 90% of my social interaction comes from work. I get really depressed being a home. But I don't like being there either since it's a face-to-face with customers type of job and just all of the menial aforementioned BS that goes along with it.
Part of me just wants to quit and close this chapter of my life, and focus on completely decompressing for a while, then hit the books hard and apply to anything and everything I have interest in, then move. I can obviously afford it, but should I?
Despite all the rambling and back and forth, I do have goals. I know I definitely want (need?) my own place as soon as I can. The problem is, I don't want to rent. I want the house to be in an area I want to be in, which I will figure out, but I want my time renting to be <2 years while I figure out exactly where that is. Another thing is, I'm saving to pay for it mostly in cash. In another 3-5 years of staying here and working, I could pretty much pay cash for a house anywhere I wanted (despite extremely HCOL areas) since I already have some saved up. The thing is, after that, my working would only need to be minimal anyway (if at all) so what is the point in even using my degree when my goals for living are basically already met by age 30? Fulfillment, excitement, and change would be one way to answer that question, and I realize it's personal, but the choices are hard.