They say a new job can make a man do strange things. They may quit smoking, hit the gym, and try to dress better.
Xenophobic propaganda from your boss aside, that’s not always the case. In fact, with some companies, you’re more likely to see employees slack off once they get a promotion or their feet are under them in a new gig.
But there are other signs that point towards trouble in your current position. Maybe it’s time for a change before you snap and cause international incidents at work or worse?
Signs you need a new job
Here are 10 signs you need a new job:
1) Your health is deteriorating
Some might call this one an overreaction but hear me out. If you’re constantly depressed, have headaches, or just not feeling well, then it’s time to get proactive about your situation before it gets worse.
Low energy mixed with low morale can lead to bad decisions that hurt everyone involved. So do yourself a favor and check your pulse every morning before work. If it doesn’t say ‘I’m alive,’ then something has got to change because giving up on life isn’t worth being comfortable at work.
2) Your co-workers are weighing you down
If this is the case, then there’s no reason to stick around. A negative attitude with a few people can make the whole workplace feel like a morgue.
Even if they’re not bringing you down, starting conversations will be ten times harder than it should be, and sometimes meetings will turn into therapy sessions for them because nobody wants to talk about their problems all day long.
3) You don’t think twice before ignoring your family/friends
This one is pretty self-explanatory: if your family and friends start feeling like strangers and you look forward to seeing yourself on the monitor more than them, then definitely something has to change.
Working 12 hour days all week isn’t worth losing your friends and family over. Your life has to be more important than the money you’re bringing in for this situation to flip around. If it isn’t, then have fun trying to find a new job with minimal experience.
4) You don’t care about your career anymore
One of the most common reasons why people stay at their jobs is because they’ve reached certain milestones within the company. It might have taken years, but once they got there, something felt different.
They have no desire to go any further, so they keep on doing what should be considered menial tasks until something/someone makes them leave or retire (Don’t retire!).
This feeling can eventually lead managers down the wrong path because constantly asking someone what’s wrong without getting an answer will break down the relationship between the manager and employee. As far as they’re concerned, you started caring less about your work, so it’s time to consider finding a new place to call home.
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5) You don’t deserve the title of “professional” any more
If you feel like you can be replaced within a week, then something has changed in that workplace. If this is happening, chances are upper management doesn’t think you’re doing your job right because pay raises stopped coming your way a long time ago or never came at all if we want to get real about things.
Whatever the case may be, see my former entry on how important relationships with managers will play out when trying to leave an environment where no one wants/takes care of you. You might not be popular, but at least you’ll be able to start looking for a new job with potential rather than getting used to your current environment.
6) Your quality of life is suffering immensely
If the only time you enjoy yourself is on weekends or when everyone else is gone, then something has changed in your workplace. If they aren’t letting up and the thought of starting over again makes you sick, ask yourself this question.
If it isn’t worth all the effort required to watch people slowly kill themselves just so that person can try and climb into an office chair with ‘manager’ written on it, then what exactly are we doing there? Life’s too short for this type of nonsense if you’re constantly worrying about changing jobs because no one should have to feel this way. That’s how you know it’s time for a change.
7) You don’t respect your superiors anymore
If you can predict what your manager is going to do or say without thinking too much about it, then there’s no reason why you should be wasting your time there. Letting go of the need to control everything will allow things to work themselves out in the end, but that means letting go of people who constantly undermine your authority.
And if they’re not willing to let go, then how about giving yourself permission at least? If this is happening, finalizing future projects will take longer than usual, and getting anything done might take an extra couple of hours because somebody has no idea what they’re doing (that could be you, for all we know.)
8) You feel like something’s missing in your life
Throwing yourself into work 24/7 is definitely a way to keep busy, but it wouldn’t hurt if you could find something else that fuels your interests.
Knowing what you want out of life and not having the time to do it can be incredibly frustrating, but at least some companies offer internships where employees can take time off to try their hand at new things without feeling guilty about choosing themselves over the job.
If they don’t have anything like this, then quit before someone takes advantage of your situation. Quit now! Don’t wait until someone calls security on you because they think you’re trying to steal from them something crazy like that!
9) Your co-workers are starting to annoy you
If you can’t stand the sight of one of your co-workers anymore, then it’s time to find a new gig where there are fewer awkward introductions.
Chances are you’ve already tried the buddy system in the past when breaking into a new company because nobody wants to feel that much pain when working with people they don’t know very well, but sometimes trying so hard to fit in will put others off.
If this keeps happening, things might never change, and before you know it, everyone is secretly plotting each other’s demise behind closed doors while feigning happiness during team-building exercises or worse! Don’t do yourself any favors by staying silent; being miserable doesn’t help anyone.
10) You’ve started to hate what you do
Pumpkin spice lattes are delicious, but the feeling you get when drinking them isn’t nearly as satisfying as being able to say, “I love what I do.” Some jobs give us the ability to travel; others have no problem keeping us up all night long with something that could potentially save someone’s life.
Maybe it’s time for a promotion, or maybe it won’t change anything either way because that job is simply too demanding for one person alone. The only option at this point is to stick things out until retirement if nothing changes but trust me, no one wants to be there forever.
No matter how much money they make or how good-looking someone is, hating what you do will eventually catch up with you.
There are millions of jobs out there, and they’re not all going to be perfect, but you never know what you could potentially find if you keep your eyes open. In the end, finding a job that’s fulfilling is as simple as knowing how to look for it.
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