Changing jobs is always a risky prospect, so it’s normal to have a lot of doubts. But if you’re at the point where you fantasise about turning in your resignation, and never walking through those doors again, then things have reached a crisis point. Here are some common signs that it’s not you, it’s your job – and it’s time to change it:
Most people say they can’t afford to quit their job – but have considered the opposite? There are, in fact, times when you can’t afford to keep doing the same job.
Remember that you cannot keep working forever. At some point in your life, such as in your 50’s, 60’s, or 70’s, there’s a possibility you’ll have to reduce your workload. It may even happen as early as your mid-30’s, if you realise that your income cannot cover the expense of your first child or first home.
As a rough guideline, your job is providing insufficient income if:
● It’s not possible for you to save even 20 per cent of your monthly income, and still survive
● Your monthly essential expenses, such as food and loan repayments, take up more than 30 per cent of your monthly income.
● You are living pay cheque to pay cheque, with no savings fund or long term retirement plan.
Under these circumstances, it’s not viable to carry on at your current income level. You are living in a dangerous situation, where a single financial emergency could leave you destitute – and if you continue on for a long time, you may find you don’t have sufficient means to retire. In this sense, we can say you can’t afford to keep holding on to this job.
It’s time for you to try and move on, and aim for something with higher income. While it may feel risky to do so, remember it’s just as risky to have no savings or retirement.
Companies and corporate cultures change over time.
A start-up, for instance, tends to be more loosely structured, but is more dynamic and has potential for growth. As the company matures, however, it could become more hierarchical, and less open to trying new things. You might find that your creativity, which was once considered an advantage, is suddenly dismissed as reckless.
Sometimes, the goals of a company can also change, to the point of becoming almost unrecognisable. The famous Shell petroleum company, for instance, has its name because it literally started as a business selling antiques and fancy shells.
In the same way, you may find that you joined a company that was all about music production, only to realise its business is now just marketing new celebrities; or you may have joined a finance company to help lay investors, but find that now the management only wants to deal with high net worth clients.
When your goals and values no longer align with your employer, the quality of your work will suffer. It’s hard to be passionate and inspired, if you dread your work assignments every week; and it may be time to find something more fulfilling.
Some companies (most famously McDoanld’s) believe in internal promotions. This means that, when they need a new supervisor or manager, they will try to promote an existing staff member to the position, rather than hire an outsider.
In these types of firms, it may still be possible to go from an entry level position to a director, over many decades. However, this type of structure was more common in our parents’ era (1970’s and before) than it is today.
More companies today prefer to keep existing staff where they are, while hiring outsiders into higher positions. This is especially true if your job is highly specialised, such as coding or high level sales (if they promote you, there’s’ no one who can replace you!)
Whatever the justification, one thing is clear: it doesn’t bode well for you if you’re at an entry level or in a highly specialised role. You might, for instance, join the company as a coder, and then leave after 20 years as…still just one of the coders, with pay raises that barely keep up with inflation.
It’s important to talk with your superiors about your Route of Advancement (ROA), and to track whether you’re really moving up. If things have been stagnant for a long time, you may want to take your valuable skills or experience elsewhere.
Some jobs have been replaced by automation or new technologies; and the people still doing them are the final remnants of a legacy. The company simply hasn’t upgraded yet, and is only keeping them on until the inevitable happens.
One example of this was the disappearance of the “office boy”, or mail carriers and sorters. Toward the end of the 1990’s, many Singaporeans in such positions were left in dire financial straits, as email removed the need for large mail departments in offices.
A good employer will recognise such issues, and attempt to upskill or reskill employees in these positions (e.g., training data entry staff in automation). However, some companies may decide it’s not worth their time and effort, and simply keep staff in those positions until they’re ready to be discarded.
If you feel your career is being disrupted by new technology, and your employer isn’t giving you different opportunities, it may be time to leave. Quickly.
72-hour work weeks, not seeing the faces of family or friends, and outright sleeping in the office are the wrong things to celebrate. And yet, some employers stress that being a workaholic is an admirable quality, and makes you a model employee.
In reality, workaholics tend to become less productive (studies have shown that 40-hour weeks tend to be more productive than 60-hour weeks). In addition, workaholics develop traits that make them hard to work with, hence diminishing their value to the overall job market.
If you stay a workaholic, you may develop traits such as separatism (distrust of working in groups), or early burnout (just doing more of the same thing rather than coming up with efficient methods, and doing it poorly as you’re fatigued). There’s also an indirect cost to your health: workaholics tend to be more sedentary, take on more stress, and are more open to conditions such as heart attacks and strokes.
So if you’re in a work culture that celebrates workaholism, it’s time to save yourself and find something less toxic. Your family will also thank you for it, as you’re also stressing them out when you vent your work issues.
If you’re not sure where to turn next, or how to ease into a new job, come talk to us at Exodus Capital. We’ve helped many professionals from other jobs enter the finance industry, where they’ve managed to find a better income, and better work-life balance. One short conversation with us may be all it takes to better your life.
