Signs It May Be Time To Leave A Job

Toxic Work Environment

If you are working in a toxic work environment, it may be time to consider a new job. Perhaps you deal with owners or managers who always think they are right and if you offer anything to the contrary, they will berate you. Perhaps you deal with silos within your company where some get special treatment or are part of an inner circle which is almost always the exception to the rules even though their actions are contrary to company policy, best practices, set a poor example and may lead to low morale. Perhaps there is constant negativity in the office due to rivalry, egos and infighting. Whatever the case may be, a toxic work environment is not good for you. Bringing these issues to ownership and management may help; but, unless ownership and management step up and make real, impactful and immediate changes instead of accepting this as status quo, it’s time to consider making your exit.

Lack of Growth Opportunities

Most people probably won’t want to be stuck in the same position forever; that is, unless they have found their true calling. There needs to be real growth opportunities within a company to make staying with the same company viable. Having conversations with supervisors, managers and ownership to discuss potential opportunities for growth may help; but, beware getting the runaround (ex: it’s something for consideration, but for now, we need you where you are OR now is not a good time but let’s discuss again in six months). If you’re getting the runaround or feel like it’s a stall tactic, there’s a good chance it’s time to consider moving on.

Also, don’t confuse a basic promotion and salary hike with a true growth opportunity. It may just be a temporary fix. You may realize shortly thereafter that even that basic promotion and salary hike doesn’t live up to the expectation of a real growth opportunity as you may be doing the EXACT same job you were doing before but with a new title and a bit more money. You might be okay with that. But, if you’re not, you should move on.

Being Undervalued

Feeling undervalued at a company where you have consistently stepped up and put in 100% is an indicator that it might be time to move on. Perhaps ownership and management constantly tell you how much you mean to the company and how much they appreciate your work but that’s as far as it goes. You may be asked to take on or are given more work, projects and responsibilities outside the scope of what you ordinarily do but aren’t fairly compensated for the work, projects and added responsibilities. You start to pick up all the odds and ends that no one else in the company can do or wants to do and it suddenly becomes part of your job description. If you try to bring it to the attention of ownership or management, it’s dismissed, ignored, treated as a low priority or set aside as something that can’t be dealt with now for various reasons.

Companies often streamline and consolidate roles and positions for cost-savings. Having one person wear many hats and be a jack-of-all-trades or jill-of-all-trades in lieu of hiring two or three people for the same work can trim expenses and bring substantial savings to the bottom-line. While a benefit to the company, it is often to the detriment of the employee as he/she may become overworked and undervalued.

Poor Company Culture and Leadership

You spend a lot of time at work so it’s important that the company culture is one that aligns well with you. Company culture is defined starting at the top with the company’s leadership. If the company’s leadership lacks vision, experience and sets a poor example, that will have a domino effect on the entire company. Company leadership needs to steer the ship. They must lead by example, create an atmosphere and environment that drives the business, be considerate of and value its employees and their contributions. They must treat all employees with dignity and respect, promote and foster cooperation and collaboration. There must be a certain level of organization, structure and direction. The company should be a place where employees want to come in every day, contribute to the growth and success of the business and not be a place where they count the hours until the pain and misery comes to an end. If you are in a company with a poor company culture and leadership, it’s time to consider moving on.

Job Affects Your Health

You are working ridiculous hours every week. You are constantly stressed, tired, lack energy and feel sick all the time; but it’s not due to some cold or illness. You practically stay tied to your desk and rarely leave the office for breaks or for lunch. Your meal schedules and eating habits have gone awry. You have trouble getting a good night’s rest because you wake up in the middle of the night thinking about work. You rarely have weekends, vacation or anytime to recharge; but, if you do get a chance to get away, you may feel better until you get back to work. There’s a pretty good chance your job is seriously impacting your health. It’s time to consider moving on and finding a job that offers a much better personal/work life balance.