I Hate My Job: What Does It Take To Change Jobs?

Should you even change jobs, when you catch yourself saying, “I hate my job”? Frankly, I do not have the answer, but what I will attempt to do here is to show you that the path to changing jobs is not a linear one. Finding that answer is a painful path because of the uncertainty that it takes you. Having quit from my job twice to dabble in two very different fields has taught me that there are no clear one-stop answers.

People tend to think that when they start thinking ‘I hate my job’, that’s when they should quit. Perhaps so, but more often than not they find themselves back in the loop that they wanted to get out from in the first place. Learning what you want to do is like finding ourselves. It is a tough journey and one that we may not even have an ‘actual’ answer for this lifetime.

No Overnight Solution
There are no overnight solutions to the challenge of ‘I hate my job’. To change your job and to find one that you truly like takes time. And time means patience. There are two routes that you can take; one that is commonly practiced, which is to find out what you really want then, and quit your current job. But of course, I have also seen people who quit their current job then find another one that they like.

Both have worked for different people. The only problem is for you to think which one suits you best. The latter provides for a lot of uncertainties. And if you have the financial capabilities and is willing to sacrifice your savings in order to get the ideal job then you are maybe more ready than others.

The challenge is this, sometimes even after finding what is deemed the ideal job it still does not satisfy you. What do you do then? Well, do not let the experience go to waste. Which is why finding that elusive dream job takes time, patience and hard work. Each job that you move to teaches you something about yourself. You need to be sure you are able to pin point what it is that teaches you about yourself and your view about work. That way, each time you say, “I hate my job” and quit it helps you progress closer to your goal.

Time
Changing jobs takes a lot of sacrifice especially when you quit without knowing what you want to do next. Money is definitely one of them, and then time in order to find another job. Assuming you find a job fairly quickly, you need to think about the time needed to start all over again with the new company. There will also be uncertainties you need to grapple with from the moment you put in your resignation letter till you have settled into your new job.

Patience
It takes a lot of patience not knowing when you will get a job, and in the longer term what you want to do with your life. There is also a lot of patience involved in experimenting with different jobs trying to find your ‘true’ self. I used ‘true’ in quotes because the working self that you know is obviously a facet of what you are and not the actual total self. Hence, this journey of self-discovery will take a lot of patience. It is not going to be easy and there are no straight answers any career gurus can point you towards.

Hard Work
Changing jobs is hard work. Changing jobs in order to find what you love is even harder work. So, let no one tell you once you have quit and changed jobs you will find nirvana to your career success. There are no such easy answers neither for newbies at work nor veterans. The experiments of doing work either on the side after your full time job, during weekends to try out if you like certain jobs or quitting outright to experiment will take a lot of work. It will also take a lot of hard work to figure out what really suits you and what it is that you are pursing with your new career.

Humble Enough?
Perhaps you should also start thinking if you have tried hard enough at your current job before you say, “I hate my job”. It is far too easy to say that and blame others. It is far too easy to give up than to say, “I will find other ways to make this work.” Self-discovery takes time and with work is the same. It takes time. Have you taken enough time to understand the work you are currently doing? Time and effort to understand the people you are currently working with?

Please do not think that the perfect career is around the corner. People who found happiness and satisfaction from their work took years to find it. More importantly, there aren’t jobs in this world that pays a lot for little sacrifice whether in terms of time or effort. If there are, they are usually known as get rich quick schemes

So, before you say, “I hate my job” one more time – perhaps you should understand your role at work and know the role of work in your life. More importantly, make sure you accomplish something daily at work and then see of you go home more fulfilled and satisfied.