Tips For Quitting A Job You Don’t Like

You may have wondered how much time of our lives we spend on work. More or less, taking into account life expectancy in the United States (which is 79 years), it turns out that we work an average of 12 consecutive years of our lives, with an average working life of 45 years, 40 hours a week. What happens if you decide to quit a job you don’t like?

Work can be a source of job satisfaction and well-being, or quite the opposite. In the latter case, even if all the conditions are in place to do so, most people find it difficult to resign and rarely do so right away.

However, a bad work environment with chronic stress and an imbalance between costs and benefits pose a threat to your health. So you should really consider quitting a job you don’t like and change jobs.

Three reasons to quit a job you don’t like

A bad work environment, insufficient pay, humiliation and violence are all reasons to quit a job you don’t like. Or maybe there is something about your job that goes against your values ​​or you have new professional interests. You may want to move to another company or even change jobs altogether. These are just some of the reasons why most people quit their jobs.

However, when you are faced with a job that you don’t like, we can summarize the reasons in a few words: health, personal satisfaction and low productivity due to lack of motivation.

1. Take care of your health

What is the price you will pay if you stay in that position? Anxiety, insomnia, panic attacks, sadness or permanent anger are just some of the consequences.

They are some of the symptoms that can occur when work causes not only boredom but also discomfort or depression. The specific economic conditions can be dire. But it’s much worse when it affects your health, which can lead to serious consequences.

2. Self-esteem and motivation

If we stay for a long time in spaces where we don’t feel comfortable, it affects our self-esteem and motivation. On the one hand, because we no longer feel useful and valuable. On the other hand, we lose interest in what we do. Taking on daily tasks and maintaining our creativity becomes monotonous.

3. The risk of making mistakes

Along with our motivation, when we start working on autopilot, attention and concentration decrease and we are more likely to make mistakes that can be significant.

How do you quit a job you don’t like?

If you don’t have enough reasons to stay, then you have enough reasons to leave. However, it can be easier said than done when it comes to quitting a job you don’t like. Convincing yourself and realizing that this is the right thing to do can be very difficult.

Inform yourself

As a matter of responsibility and even reputation, it is generally a good idea not to leave a job overnight. It is important to report this in advance. Also make sure you are aware of the administrative and legal procedures you need to follow.

As for time, many people don’t know how much notice period they have. Is it 2 weeks? 1 month? So the first thing you should do is check if your employment contract makes this explicit in some way.

The second thing to evaluate is what position you hold and how much time you may need to devote to your replacement. For example, if you are in a key position where very specific training is required, it is best to allow more than 2 weeks notice. That way there is time to hire someone else so that you can supervise the training, even if it is minimal.

A job you don’t like: prepare to leave

This point is related to the previous point. It is always best to leave on good terms. Therefore, consider sharing the reasons for your departure with your supervisor or Human Resources. This provides feedback so they can try to make any improvements.

It’s also wise that the first person to know is your boss. That way, he or she won’t hear it from anyone else. Finally, keep in mind that you also need time to pack the things you need to take with you.

I want to, but…

It’s important to think about what beliefs, situations, or fears make you feel like it’s impossible to quit a job you don’t like. Sometimes these thoughts are linked to self-esteem ( “I won’t be able to find another job” ), while in other cases it is a financial concern.

Forget the guilt about having free time

Leaving a job doesn’t have to be the end of your working life. It’s important to see it as a transition time, where you can give yourself time to get to know yourself, regain interest, and even get bored.

It’s important to work on your guilt about having free time, especially in a society that has taught us that we need to be productive to be valuable.

Often, in the dizzying pace of everyday life, we lose the ability to connect with our interests and our minds wander aimlessly. It is precisely at such moments that great ideas can arise, so that you can reinvent and reorient yourself.

Think about alternative scenarios

To quit a job, you don’t have to look for another job first. What is important is to define a short- and medium-term horizon. This also helps to calm anxiety.

For example, look at how much money you need to have available to meet your basic obligations (for example, food and rent) and how long you can do with that money. This does not mean that there will be no unforeseen events along the way, but their impact will be less.

Sometimes this plan has nothing to do with finances, but with the peace of mind that you are going to do something. In this case, you can think about which activities you find interesting and which you can sign up for.

Prepare yourself

Often we want to quit a job because we are thinking about developing a new business or changing our career completely. Either way, it’s best to prepare well. You need to know what’s happening in your area of ​​interest, update your resume, find courses that can help you, and so on.

Don’t idealize

Quitting your current job isn’t the end of the world, but you shouldn’t idealize it either. That is, the first feelings and emotions about quitting a job will pass, and other feelings will come.

It is important not to idealize or dramatize one or the other scenario. Just recognize that just as there will be good times, there will also be heartaches.

Take care of your mental health when you quit a job you don’t like

Discomfort in the work environment has a direct relationship with our mental health. There are even syndromes, such as burnout syndrome, that are more powerful or overt expressions of this daily suffering.

It is important to respect the times and processes for dismissal from work, but you also have to take it seriously and not wait for everything to blow over or things to change on their own.

Behind many of these thoughts are excuses and fears, but at what cost? Let’s not lose sight of the fact that there is no need to get used to discomfort and that we deserve the opportunity to feel comfortable and continue to grow.