How do you know it’s the right time to leave a job? Leaving the security and tenure of an established position, especially if you’ve been there for some time, is never (well, almost never) an easy decision, and it’s an important one. By definition, it sends your career in a different direction. It may also play a part in future interviews, when interviewers ask about the factors you considered when you chose to move along.
Bear in mind the truth of the adage, the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. If you’re thinking of moving on, make sure you’ve done the self-reflection to be confident that the move you’re making is the right one.
To help make the best decision possible, there are two important questions to consider:
What are you trying to get away from?
What are you trying to move towards?
Most job changes are a combination of the two. There are undoubtedly certain things that you’re dissatisfied with in your current role, and you want to get away from those things in a new job. There are likely also things missing in your current job, and ideally a new job would include those aspects. Unless you take the time to understand your motivations for making a change, it’s highly likely you’ll continue to be dissatisfied, perhaps jumping from one company to another, never feeling that the role is a good fit.
All that said, there are a few reasons why people tend to choose to leave their job.
One of the most common reasons is a lack of appreciation.
For some people, it’s a question of money. You might feel that your company isn’t giving you the salary (or the increase) you deserve. Sometimes it’s not about the money. Most people work best when they’re given validation and recognition for the work they do, even a simple ‘thanks!’ or ‘good job!’. If you don’t receive this kind of recognition, or if your performance reviews are mediocre, it’s easy to feel unappreciated and undervalued.
In light of the questions above, the first step is to figure out what appreciation means to you. Once you know what that is, you then have the opportunity to seek it out. If you’re not making as much money as you believe you should, you might ask for more. There may also be things you can do (taking on additional projects, for example, or enrolling in additional training of some kind) to position yourself for a larger increase. If your last performance review was lukewarm, did you get feedback about how to improve, and did you act on that feedback? It’s human nature to seek appreciation. If you don’t feel valued where you work, it’s natural to start thinking about moving to another place where you are.
The second very common reason people move is a lack of opportunity. This also can mean a number of things. For some people, opportunity means career progression with increasingly senior titles and growing teams. For other people – particularly many in technical careers – it’s more about learning and development.
If you’re feeling stagnant, think about what’s missing for you. If you want to be promoted to higher levels of responsibility, have you demonstrated the kind of initiative that gets you noticed? Have you put your hand up for opportunities to demonstrate leadership, regardless of title? If the lack of opportunity for you is more about opportunities to learn and grow, perhaps consider narrowing your focus, determining a direction for your learning and even seeking out specific courses. Many companies are quite willing to support their employees’ learning, if the investment will pay off in increased performance and capability. It just might be a question of asking for it.
Once again, if you truly feel you’ve plateaued, with no opportunities to move ahead in your career, it’s quite normal to turn your eyes to other opportunities.
The third most common reason people tend to move on is bad culture and poor management. The sad truth is, some workplaces are truly awful. People may be verbally abusive. Some workplaces can be literally unsafe, with safety violations to which management turns a blind eye. If you have the misfortune of working in such a place, and you can’t resolve it through legal means or regulatory bodies, the right choice may be to move on. Perhaps even without another job to go to, if your financial circumstances permit. No one should be expected to stay in a job that risks their mental, emotional, or physical health.