Signs it is Time to Look for a New Job

Dec 7, 2020 | Job Search Help

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When is it time to see what’s out there?

A lot of people have been asking me, what are the signs it is time to look for a new job?

Let’s be honest, with all that’s happening around the world right now, lots — I mean LOTS — of people are thinking about their futures and if they can improve their situation.

With so much uncertainty in the economy, it’s hard to be 100% sure if it’s time to make a change.

Here are 4 signs that it’s time to think about a new job:

You’ve hit some sort of ceiling

Ceilings can take multiple forms. It could be a ceiling based on room to grow within the company to a higher role on the organizational chart. It could be a financial ceiling where you are unable to meet your ultimate financial goals. It could be a ceiling unrelated to position or compensation. Many people love the role they are in and are ambitious within it by getting better and better at it, but still can hit a ceiling in what they can still learn in that role. Feeling chronically bored is a good indicator of this type of ceiling.
Toxic Work Environment

This one can be obvious — you can feel it. Acknowledging it can be tough because it is a subjective and sensitive subject and you do not want to be seen as being negative. If your workplace lacks communication, has extreme levels of backbiting, or is excessively full of rumours, amongst other indicators, it is a toxic work environment.
Your leader isn’t a partner

A good boss is someone who you work with in a collaborative partnership. A good leader pulls alongside their team and treats their people as equal to them as opposed to beneath them. If you and your boss cannot collaborate openly and constructively, they aren’t supporting you, or not teaching you things, then they are not a partner.
Vast organizational change occurs frequently

If your organization needs to make large, sweeping changes to their organizational chart on a really regular basis (multiple times a year), it is a sign of instability and lack of deliberate planning. Don’t take this the wrong way, organizations need to change and adapt to grow and thrive. They *should* and *must* change. However, if the business model is vastly being changed all the time, then it is a sign of an organization that either doesn’t value proper collaboration and planning when changes are needed or have a very unstable business model that is collapsing. Best to plan for what’s next before you have to.

These are just a few of the signs that you may need to find a new job. If you do decide to make that change, don’t blow the place up on your way out. Leave with grace and gratitude for the opportunity to learn and grow.

Bear in mind, no organization is perfect. You will find elements of these in any place you work. The question is whether or not these things happen occasionally or if they dominate the working environment.

Knowing when to change roles is tough because we get attached to certain things at our current roles and the uncertainty of change is not easy to confront. But ignoring the signs that it is time to look for a new job will lead to a less than fulfilling career.

Right now with the pandemic, it’s doubly tough to take the leap because the news is dominated by economic doom and gloom. But there are jobs out there. Lots of people are still finding work. Someone I know has even found two jobs at a time where there are supposedly few to be found!

You have nothing to lose by searching for and applying for jobs. You only get to do your career once, you may as well be fulfilled doing so!

And I’m here and ready to help you every step of the way.