3 Signs It’s Time to Find a New Job – Ask #HR Bartender

I received this note from a reader recently. I don’t know about you, but this reader seems to be at their wit’s end. Time for a new job? 

Some of us have had our positions downgraded by a colleague who (in our opinion) shouldn’t even be doing our performance reviews because he has no idea what our roles are! Although I was fine with my review this year, the amount of stuff I’m now being asked to do is over the top to say the least.

I have just found out that my next review will be with the colleague mentioned above and not my actual supervisor. Where do I stand there? Hope you can help.

Obviously when you are responsible for conducting performance appraisals, I do believe it’s important to understand the job and responsibilities. It doesn’t mean you need to have held the job in the past. For instance, as a director of human resources, my boss – the CEO – conducted my performance appraisal. They weren’t a former HR director but they did have an understanding of my role.

business, job, new job, signs, performance, performance appraisal, work

But I’ve written about performance appraisals before. You can check it out here, here, and here. I think this note brings up a bigger issue. How do you know when you just can’t fix the situation? Because it’s possible in this case, the situation can’t be repaired. Then what?

Unfortunately, I can’t answer this reader’s specific question. There are just too many unknowns. But hopefully, I can offer some perspective. In the past, I’ve had employees tell me stories about how unhappy they are, how their boss is a jerk, and how the company is terrible. And in the end, all they wanted was someone to fix it – some magical formula that would make everything better. When it’s possible that the answer is outside their current organization. Yes, just maybe, the answer is they need to find another job.

Now, looking for a new opportunity doesn’t mean the employee or the company are at fault. Sometimes circumstances change. The employee’s goals and the company’s goals aren’t in alignment anymore. That’s okay. So I wanted to offer three signs that it might be time to explore a change in scenery.

  1. You can’t stand the work. I’m not talking about one or two responsibilities. Every job has its downsides. But if you hate more of the job than you like, it might be time for a change. Also, be sure to ask yourself – what is it about the job I don’t like. Are you simply bored? Or is the work too challenging?
  1. You wish things would go back to the way they used to be. Let me deliver a piece of tough love. No one can promise that things are going to stay the same or go back to the “good old days.” Business changes all the time. That means the way we conduct business changes.
  1. You hate the people you work with. I’m not talking about the nice person with quirky habits. I’d like to think you can tolerate them. But if you dread having a conversation with the majority of your department, that includes your boss, then maybe you should look for new surroundings.

Sometimes I wonder if employees are so overwhelmed at the notion of finding a new job that they (often unsuccessfully) trick themselves into thinking they can fix the job they have. This creates unhappy employees and impacts the entire workplace.

While I’m not telling anyone to go quit their job tomorrow, employees should be realistic about their situation. It’s possible that, if you start looking for a new job, you’ll discover the job you have is pretty darn good – which can be very helpful. It’s also possible you’ll find an opportunity that’s light-years better.

Image courtesy of Sharlyn Lauby

1
Exit mobile version