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You’ve known it for awhile but didn’t want to face the realization. You have tried to make it work with your job but you keep feeling like you aren’t making any progress. Should you quit? Tough it out and try to improve your situation? Coast for now so you can put your energy into finding something better?

It’s never easy to think you are failing at a job that you have put so time and energy into. Sometimes your job situation can improve through having an honest conversation with your boss or moving into another role which is a better fit.

There are several situations in which you should definitely quit your job. Not necessarily right away—but if any of these scenarios apply to you then start planning your exit strategy.

1. Lack of Professional Development

During your interview, you were told that the company believed in equipping their employees with ongoing learning opportunities for growth. However, you have yet to see any interest in your professional development from your supervisors. It’s typically accompanied by a feeling of unmet potential, restlessness, or being “stuck.”

Your company should be helping you in the following areas in regards to your professional development:

  • Gain new skills, networks, expertise, or certifications by working on new projects.
  • Invest in yourself directly by paying for your education or professional development experiences like conferences, courses, and training.
  • Receive mentorship from people who are more experienced than you.

If you aren’t getting these kinds of opportunities with your job even when you have directly asked for them, then it’s time to reconsider finding another company that does support your professional development growth.

2. Your Boss Doesn’t Value Your Strengths and Skills

A manager’s role is to help employees be successful at their job. They should take a vested interest in understanding your unique personality, strengths, and skill sets. However, there are some bosses that treat their employees as units instead of as individuals. This approach toward management can erode a good relationship with an employee and cause them to feel unappreciated and devalued. It can be a warning sign if your boss isn’t being proactive in getting to know you including having regular one-on-one sessions with you about you and your role.

3. You Start Researching Other Jobs

In almost every situation, there is some facet of your job that makes it worth staying at. But be honest with yourself about why you’re not happy. And if there’s something you want to change or gain—some skill, some side project, something that gives you valuable traits that you didn’t have before—don’t be afraid to ask for these things. And if you’ve tried, and your organization isn’t receptive to your requests, then it’s time to start looking. It’s a telltale sign when you start crawling job boards and sending out resumes while at your current company.

4. Your Role Doesn’t Play To Your Strengths

Sometimes a job title or description can be misleading because there are many facets to one role. For example, a woman with an impressive background is hired to run a marketing department for a company. The role involves a lot of analysis and data mining. She excels in strategy with marketing campaigns but feels drained when working in spreadsheets for the majority of her day. But she does understand marketing analytics and how to talk to clients and supervisors about campaign metrics. She is an extrovert and shines when strategizing with her team and helping push the project forward. Her boss is frustrated with her analytical skills but doesn’t recognize her abstract thinking capabilities and creativity. This is a very common scenario for a lot of talented professionals. Another similar example is that many COO’s are naturally promoted to CEO roles but struggle because their operational mindsets don’t fit with the visionary mentality that the CEO must possess to lead the company. This is a misalignment of talent as well as mismanaged expectations about the person and the role they were hired to perform.
If any of the above apply to you, I would recommend doing some serious evaluation of your current job and job environment. If you are looking for guidance on your next career move, please feel free to reach out to me to schedule an initial consult to talk about your career goals.