Is it getting harder to get out of bed in the morning? Do you feel stuck? Do you spend time thinking about calling in “sick”? It can be hard to tell if you’re just having a bit of a slump or if it’s actually time to leave your job.
First, start by thinking about when things changed. Were you engaged and energized last year? Last month? Was the change gradual or sudden? Any idea what caused it? If you can pinpoint any of these, you can get a sense of how much it bothers you. Maybe your new manager is just taking time to get a sense of things. Perhaps you’re missing a former coworker. Or maybe you need to tackle some new tasks. In these cases, the change will be fairly small and pretty manageable. Go ahead and start by taking that mental health day. Note the things that you can do to make things feel better: check in with the new boss, have coffee with the former colleague, identify growth opportunities in the job. And be sure to use your vacation days! Burning yourself out is never the answer.
But what if it’s not that small or manageable?
Here are some signs that it’s time to leave your job:
- You dread work. I mean you really dread it. You wake up in the morning to a cold lump in your stomach. You pull into he parking lot and want to punch someone or cry. You lose sleep thinking about how you have to go to work tomorrow.
- You’re not getting much done. We all have those procrastination days, but if you find yourself unable to remember the last time you had a productive day, it’s likely part of a larger pattern. And that pattern, of course, is your lack of interest and engagement.
- You’re getting sick or injured, or you’re not sleeping. All jobs come with periods of stress, but they shouldn’t ever make you sick!
- You’re spending money on things you ordinarily wouldn’t. Those little pick-me-ups can be nice in the moment, but they can add up pretty quickly. Note whether you’re making choices that are unusual or out of character. These retail therapy sessions or frequent cocktail hours can be a way to let you know your behavior has changed.
- You complain about your job a lot. Your friends and family know it’s coming, maybe even brace for it. If you get coffee with a coworker, you know it’s going to be complaining about work.
- There’s no room for moving up. There might not even be room for a lateral move. You’re just there, topped out in your role, with nowhere to go.
The environment stinks. You may have a toxic boss or coworkers. Maybe someone is even gaslighting you. Or the mean clique has you in their sights. To me, this may be the most important factor of all. If the workplace is toxic and horrible, things aren’t going to get better, and you should escape before things start having an impact on your sense of self. If you’re starting to think you’re incompetent, unfit for work, or bad at a job you used to feel good at, take a look around you and see if maybe someone has poisoned your pond. You don’t deserve to be in an environment like that, so if this stuff is happening, it’s time to run
