6 Reasons You Should (Consider) Quitting Your Job

Are you considering quitting your job? It could be for multiple reasons: You might be interested to explore another industry. Or you may feel unsatisfied with your current role. Or maybe you’re eager for a new challenge. Or you just want to do something of your own for a change.

Whatever the case may be, quitting a job can feel like a big decision for many. Still, there’s no harm in taking a step back to assess your situation. You owe it to yourself to at least find out what else might be out there for you. Plus, there’s no downside to knowing your options.

So, how do you know when it’s time to go? Here are 6 reasons to consider before leaving your career:

Reason 1: You feel stagnant.

Got the feeling like you’ve hit the ceiling with your current job? Feeling challenged is crucial to staying engaged and happy at work. But maybe at some point, you no longer feel satisfied with your responsibilities and day-to-day tasks. Daily activities feel boring, mundane and monotonous.

You might desire some kind of advancement as you progress in your career, which includes improving your skills, assuming more responsibility and gaining practical experience. If your company doesn’t encourage expanding your skills as an employee, and you feel like you’ve exhausted your skills and talents in one position, consider looking for an employer that will allow you to attend trainings, gain certifications, and expand your education in a way that is beneficial to both you and your employer.

Or maybe you feel like you’re wasting your potential away by working in a career that doesn’t support your inner talents, interests and passions. Deep inside, you feel like a little fireball of potential urging to unleash, but somehow is trapped in a cage (this was how I felt working as a houseman). You yearn to express yourself more fully and authentically. However, the work you do does not allow that. And that’s frustrating.

If that’s the case, then it’s probably time to move forward.

Reason 2: There is a mismatch between the work you do, and your unique capabilities.

Each person has their own natural inclinations, innate talents and potentials. We’re all built differently. Just like our fingerprints, every single human being is extremely unique.

As such, you’re not meant to be pigeonholed by a single paper called a “college degree”. A career is not a one-size-fit-all model.

If you’re always feeling burned out, stressed or anxious at work, constantly making mistakes, failing to get simple tasks done, and drained by the end of workday, then probably you should consider whether the work you’re assigned to do actually matches the unique gifts you possess — your skills, talents and potentials.

Just as an organism can’t grow in the wrong culture, we humans can’t fully thrive if our working environment doesn’t support who we are made to be.

Take an example: If you’re an artistic person who loves to experiment with creative, abstract ideas and go with the flow, it’s less likely that you will flourish in an environment that is too rigid and sterile. That kind of environment, however, would be more suitable to an accountant, lab assistant or data analyst instead.

Unfortunately, not everyone is going to bend over backwards to match us with the right career — not your colleagues, boss, manager or even HR. Ultimately, it’s something that we need to figure out for ourselves.

Reason 3: You experience physical, mental and emotional deterioration.

When you experience a career mismatch for a period of time — doing unfulfilling work that doesn’t resonate with your soul, and not actualising your potentials — you will end up feeling exhausted, stressed and burned out.

It feels like you are trying to force something that isn’t meant to be, going against the current of your true nature. As a consequence, you will go to work feeling depressed, anxious or irritable. Work starts to feel like a chore you have to endure, rather than enjoy.

It won’t be long before these mental and emotional breakdowns manifest into physical symptoms. It is widely known that chronic stress could cause physiological problems in the body. It is the silent, invisible culprit behind most types of chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, stroke, autoimmune disease, diabetes mellitus, hypertension etc.

The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States estimates that stress account about 75% of all doctors visit (Simmons SP, Simmons JC. Measuring emotional intelligence. New York: Summit Publishing Group; 1997).

However, we should see these physical symptoms as signals from our body, warning us that something is off-balanced. After all, our body is just doing its job to protect us. These symptoms are messengers of a deeper problem, in which we have to look into.

And the solution could just simply be — taking a break, re-assessing your situation and find another job that is more aligned with you.

Reason 4: Your work is not aligned with your values and desired lifestyle.

You may be working in a career that doesn’t fit your values and desired lifestyle. Your values might be freedom, autonomy and flexibility. You want to be able to spend quality time with loved ones, or travel the world without needing permission from your boss.

However, you may have a busy work schedule that doesn’t permit you to do what you love and value most.

We all value different things, depending on our needs and obligations. For example, it may be easier for an unmarried, single person to throw themselves into work. They don’t mind the hustle. But it might be different for a married person with children to do the same.

If that’s the case, then it’s probably time to reconfigure your work-life situation.

Always know ‘why’ you do what you do, and ask yourself if your life aligned with that.

Reason 5: You feel undervalued at work.

No matter how insignificant or simple our work is, we all want to feel valued and appreciated for what we do. It’s motivating when you feel like your work makes a difference, and many people seek that feeling of value or self-worth in their profession.

This doesn’t mean that you need a grand applause at the end of every workday, but it does mean that a little recognition goes a long way.

Some examples where you might feel undervalued could be regarding pay (you don’t feel like you earn your worth), lack of appreciation (you rarely get verbal affirmation that you’re doing a good job), or overt criticism (instead of constructive criticism, you often receive harsh or negative criticism).

If you value what you do, then work with someone who also appreciates and value that. Life is too short to be around those who constantly brings you down.

Reason 6: You have no drive or motivation to work.

Imagine this: You’re literally dragging your feet to work. You dread Mondays. You don’t connect well with your colleagues. You survive through the weekdays, just to live for the weekends. You don’t feel joy in what you’re doing. But you have to do it, because you need the paycheck.

If this is you, then it’s a major red flag.

In his book “Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us”, author Daniel Pink states that there are three things that drive us:

• Autonomy – A desire to be self-directed. It increases engagement over compliance.
• Mastery – The urge to get better skilled.
• Purpose – The desire to do something that has meaning and is important.

And this applies to our work, too.

For work to be fulfilling and satisfying, we want autonomy in our actions and decisions; we want to achieve mastery in what we do; and we want a sense of purpose. We want to know that the work we do is creating an impact, and that we are fully utilising our gifts, potentials and capabilities.

Ask yourself: Am I driven or motivated to work? Is this worth my time, and aligned with my desired life?

Conclusion

With all that being said, I’m not suggesting you walk into the office tomorrow and yell to your boss, “I QUIT!”

Of course, there are probably multiple reasons why we chose to stay put in our current career — financial constraint, economic turmoil, lack of certain skills or experiences, other personal obligations etc.

But I am asking you to imagine an alternative universe for yourself — one where you choose your own adventure and live by your own rules. It’s a huge world out there, and it’d be sad to spend your finite lifetime on Earth doing something that takes your life away every day.

I hope you ponder upon these reasons and come up with something that speaks true to your heart. You got this.

P.S.: Are you a doctor who is burned out and feeling stuck in your profession? You want to discover a more fulfilling alternative career, but you’re not really sure how… Then join our upcoming workshop: Alternative Careers for Doctors 👩🏻‍⚕️👨🏻‍⚕️

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