Changing jobs: a dream for many, the goal of a few (unfortunately) Changing jobs is one of those thoughts that everyone has at some point. How many times have you said to yourself, perhaps in a moment of stress, or after the usual fight with a colleague or boss, or when you find yourself yet again absorbing the anger (and sometimes insults!) of an unsatisfied client:
I want to change jobs!
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Then, you look at your resume, during breaks or in the evening, when you get home, you pull out the endless and useless job listings on industry sites, on LinkedIn, in your city’s newspaper. But as the anger fades, the frustration calms, the blood cools, and often, with more sadness than before and with much resignation, you return to your work, to your desk in the company of the usual boss, the usual colleague, the usual clients, your usual work life.
We spend many hours of the day working, and if we feel dissatisfaction, it affects our personal life, making us nervous, sensitive to everything that is not going in the right direction. Our relationships suffer, our nighttime rest no longer seems restful, our vital energy decreases. One of my coaching clients, who brought me his professional dissatisfaction as a theme, described in these words what he felt: “I feel like I’m fading away, I can’t even enjoy Sunday.”
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In my opinion, however, we must distinguish, with such awareness, whether the cry “I want to change jobs” is just a momentary explosion, the satisfaction of the need to vent momentary anger, or if it is truly the most useful thing, if it is really important for you to change jobs.
Because changing jobs is a big challenge, it often means changing your life.
But how can you know if it’s time to change jobs?
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7 signals indicating it’s time to change jobs
There are signs that can give you a rather reassuring indication that the time has come to decide to start the path toward your new goal: changing jobs!
You definitely need to assess the strength of these signals for you and the impact they have on your work and personal life. But let’s start with this list.
1. High constraint
Do you dread getting out of bed in the morning? At night, do you sleep little and poorly because before falling asleep, you can’t help but think that tomorrow will be another bad day at work? Would you rather break rocks in a quarry in Colorado than go to the office tomorrow morning? Stress, especially when it’s at a high level, should not be ignored or suppressed. It can lead to significant physical and psychological consequences. It is necessary to preserve the quality of life as much as possible. Changing jobs could be a priority.
2. You no longer believe in your company
When you started working in your workplace, it seemed there were plenty of opportunities and you were proud to identify as part of your organization. But recently, you’ve noticed a change in the office atmosphere and your trust in the organization is no longer what it was. Perhaps management has made business or strategic decisions that don’t suit you. Maybe a management reshuffle wasn’t an interesting change. Or perhaps it’s just that your way of thinking has evolved and you’re starting to feel that the company’s values no longer align with yours. The absence of shared values can be a powerful motivation. If you find yourself in this situation, it may be time to start looking for work in a new company that you can truly believe in.
3. The Clock
Now, is your only daily goal to reach 6 PM as soon as possible? Is it a week that drags on until Friday? Are you counting the days until you can go on vacation or take a long weekend? Is the result you’re trying to achieve to have the least amount of work possible, complaining that time never passes and that boredom is killing you? It may be that your job no longer poses challenges for you, or that your current employer cannot offer you an appropriate path for development and growth. Perhaps the solution could be to change jobs, to move on to something that reignites your passion. Everyone deserves to work in a role that excites them and can maintain the desire to make a difference.
4. Desire
Sometimes, people are hired because they are really good at doing certain jobs, but not necessarily the ones they would like to do. Perhaps you are well-versed in sales, but you would prefer to be in marketing. You excel at creating spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations, but you would rather meet clients in person than sit in front of a computer screen all day. Or you’ve found yourself managing practices when instead, you’ve always imagined doing something else. Although it’s not always easy to accomplish, it’s natural to want to align your interests with your professional activity. But the more you ignore this desire, the harder it will be to change as you become increasingly specialized in a field that doesn’t truly represent you. As Steve Jobs once said, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.” It may be time to understand what you could achieve if you tried to change jobs?
5. Underutilized skills
You’ve studied a lot, specialized, and have also had various experiences. You love doing what you’ve invested time and energy into. But in your current role, all those skills are not being utilized or, for some reason, cannot be put into practice. Again, it might be worth considering changing jobs.
6. Career and responsibility
You are enterprising, you feel like you’ve closed a chapter and you’re ready to take on new challenges in a new role with greater responsibility. But perhaps the company is too small or maybe that position is already reserved for the boss’s son, nephew, brother… If there is objectively no way to advance in your career and it is important for you to do so, changing jobs may be the only way forward. I’ve created a path for this specific need. Discover: Career Booster
7. Salary
Money is important, but not always essential for having a satisfying life. You feel that you deserve recognition for your commitment, for your skills and talents, for your experience and for everything you’ve done, even with pleasure and satisfaction, for your company. But unfortunately, management doesn’t want to hear about it or simply doesn’t have the means. Changing jobs could become a necessity for you, not just psychologically.
Do you recognize yourself in any of these situations? Or are you hearing other signs that tell you it’s time to change jobs? How strong are these signals for you?
You might say to me: “Okay, Luca, the signals are there. But then? What can I do concretely?”
The first thing I want to tell you, based on the experience I’ve gained with several clients in Coaching who had this goal, is this: it’s very difficult to change jobs overnight. It’s a journey for the person, an internal and external journey, made of awareness, strategy, and action.
I would like to ask you a few questions:
- How much are you willing to put on the table, in terms of energy and commitment, to win this game?
- How important is it for you to change jobs?
- Do you know exactly what job you want to do/find?
- What is really important to you in work?
- Are you determined to let go of the old way for the new…?
Answer these questions honestly; it’s the first concrete action you can take to become aware of yourself.
5 useful actions to change jobs
I want to offer you 5 concrete ideas that I hope will help you if you really want to change jobs.
1. Turn the desire to change jobs into a smart goal
A dream, a desire is not a goal. Goals are achievable, dreams are not. A goal, to be such, must have certain characteristics. It must be SMART. If you don’t know what that means, I invite you to read this article and watch this video of mine on the subject.
2. Inventory of your values and talents
Specifically, I didn’t write “inventory of your skills” because I’m sure you know very well what you’ve studied and what you can do (although a brief reminder wouldn’t hurt). Instead, I invite you to check your values very carefully because these are the elements that allow you, if you are satisfied, to live and work well. They are what guide you consciously or unconsciously in your decisions. They are what, if you don’t respect them, will cost you dearly. It is therefore crucial to be aware of them before changing jobs! And then your talents, your personal resources. Knowing what they are will help you make the most of them to achieve your goals.
3. Remove limiting beliefs from your mind
Timothy Gallway, one of the founding fathers of Modern Coaching and author of the famous book “The Inner Game of Tennis,” says that “the rival you have in your head is scarier than what you find on the other side of the net.” Essentially, the first obstacle to change is you. I often hear: “changing jobs at 50 is impossible” or “but how can I find work at 40” or “there are no jobs in Italy.” These are classic examples of limiting beliefs. I’m sure you know people who have done it. I know several.
4. Do! to understand what to do
Seth Godin said: “Ideas emerge when different universes collide.” Act, move, do things, experiment instead of just analyzing and thinking. Try to open yourself to new possibilities. Join a course, meet people working in different contexts, push the boundaries of your comfort zone. Don’t be paralyzed by the fear of making mistakes. If you take a wrong path, you can learn something new and correct course. If you remain still, nothing happens. Moving is the best way to find your own path.
5. Develop contacts
If you are looking for opportunities, it means you are looking for people. Because opportunities are not clouds, they are not (only) cold ads. It’s people! The power of being in front of people is that you can present yourself, your values, your talents, your emotions, your desire to make a difference. Something that a resume will never be able to do. Getting known is a great opportunity. Think about it: if you were an entrepreneur who needs to hire someone, who would you prefer with equal skills? Someone you already know or a stranger?
1. Take the “Find Your Way” or “Career Booster” path
To find your own path and chart the course, start my personalized and structured support path and discover who you really are, what your talents and professional personality are, and how you can leverage them in work and life.
Access this link for more details. To finally get to the answer you’re looking for to the question “today, what is my way?”
If your goal is to give a boost to your career, which already has a clear direction, the path for you is Career Booster!
conclusion
Changing jobs is work. But for yourself. It’s a great opportunity for growth and development of new skills, and training to enhance those you already possess.
If it’s really important to you, move! In marketing, it’s said: “load, aim, fire.” Don’t be stuck in fear and the quagmire of dysfunctional and limiting thoughts.
What I can do for you, as a professional coach, is to accompany you on this journey, support you and guide you, much like a sherpa does when climbing Everest with climbers.
I have prepared a path that I called Find Your Way, and a second called Career Boosters that can help you concretely.
If you choose to embark on this journey alone, I wish you to reach your goal and give yourself a great chance!
Realizing is one of the most important things we can do!
Are you looking for how to fulfill yourself in your professional life?
I have created 4 paths that will help you!
Find Your Way
Are you confused? Do you feel stuck and don’t know how to move? Is it unclear to you which direction to take to fulfill yourself in your professional life? Go to the path
Career Boosters
Do you want to give a boost to your career? Do you want to change your professional life? How to do it concretely? How am I supposed to move? Go to the path
Builder Up
Builder UpCan my idea work? How to give new momentum to my business? How to find the right path? Go to the path
Decision on the path
Decision on the pathDo you need to make a big decision, but are you confused and stuck? Go to the path
Feeling fulfilled is a right! Not a privilege for a few!
Are you looking for how to fulfill yourself in your work life?
I have created 4 paths that will help you!
Find Your Way
Are you confused? Do you feel stuck and don’t know how to move? Is it unclear to you which direction to take to fulfill yourself in your professional life? Go to the path
Career Boosters
Do you want to give a boost to your career? Do you want to change your professional life? How to do it concretely? How am I supposed to move? Go to the path
Builder Up
Can my idea work? How to give new momentum to my business? What should I change? How to find the right path? Go to the path
Decision Path
Do you have a (clear?) goal that you want to achieve in a part of your life, not by force working? Go to the path
Feeling fulfilled is a right! Not a privilege for a few!
Free Self-Coaching Book! I created this new book “Find Your Way to Achieve Yourself in Your Professional Life”
It’s a FREE “Self Coaching” guide to bring clarity and leverage your best resources, eliminate confusion to identify the direction toward your fulfillment in work.
50 intense pages, 16 activities for:
- Helping you understand what you want to do with your professional life
- Improving your analytical skills
- Developing a concrete strategy
- Receiving a boost of self-esteem
Plus, you will receive the training path!
When you subscribe to the newsletter, you will receive in-depth training videos on the issues and exercises you will find in the book, to make your work of finding your way even more effective!
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Tag: understanding career change