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The average person spends between 37 and 40 hours at work every week. Add in the hours it takes to get to and from work, and you’re committing an awful lot of time to your job. Time flies, especially when you’re an adult with a hectic schedule. If you don’t enjoy your job, think about whether you want to spend the next 10, 20, or even 30 years doing the same thing.
If this prospect fills you with dread, it may be time to take a different career path.
Are You Happy With Your Current Career?
Even people who love their job have days when they’re stressed out, or they’d rather be doing other things. It’s probably impossible to find a job that you enjoy every single minute of every day.
However, it is possible to find positions that provide you with a level of happiness, as well as a weekly wage. If you’re not happy with your current job, it’s never too late to make changes.
Here are some tell-tale signs that indicate that your job isn’t right for you.
Boredom And Loss of Motivation
Do you find work dull and drab? Is it hard to get motivated at the start of the day? Do you pine for the moment you can log off, shut down, and head out the door? Are you struggling to inject energy and enthusiasm into the role, or have you hit a wall when it comes to new ideas or concepts?
It’s really important that you find your job interesting, and that it inspires you in some way. We spend far too long at work to leave the office every day feeling flat.
Lack Of Opportunities
When you have a job, it’s always positive to look to the future and to work towards goals and targets. We all want to progress in our chosen industry and climb the ladder.
In some cases, it’s a lot harder to come by opportunities than others. If you’ve been at the same level for a long time, and very few people in the organization are moving around or progressing to higher levels, the chances of you doing so may be slim.
If you have ambitions to achieve more, you may need to move to take advantage of openings that offer greater responsibility.
Stress
It’s normal for work to stress us out from time to time. If you’ve got a deadline approaching, you’re working on a lucrative deal, or you’ve got an important meeting booked, life can become fraught. Most of us can tolerate a certain level of stress, and sometimes, we even thrive under pressure.
However, if stress is getting to you, and it’s affecting your daily life, this is not healthy. You don’t want to spend every night thinking about spreadsheets or sales targets. You need to have a healthy work-life balance and be able to switch off and relax when you leave your workplace.
Serious Sunday Night Blues
It’s common to have a mild case of the Sunday night blues, especially after an incredible weekend. However, if you spend every weekend dreading Monday morning, this is a sign that things aren’t quite right.
Working Out What To Do
If you’ve decided your job isn’t right for you, it’s time to think about what kind of position you would like. In an ideal world, how would you spend your working day? Do you want to work with children or animals? Have you got a passion for photography, blogging, or baking? Would you like to turn that hobby into a career opportunity? Do you want to go back to college and study to be a vet, a teacher, a journalist, or an accountant? Are you interested in business, science, or the arts? Are you keen to travel?
Think about all these things when you’re considering potential career paths. Some people know what they want to do from a very early age, while others can never really pinpoint that dream job.
Don’t put pressure on yourself if you’re not quite sure what you want to do. Keep your options open and have a look around at the kinds of openings that are available.
Go to job fairs or try and get some work experience. Temp jobs are hugely beneficial because they give you an insight into what a typical working day is like.
If you have a job in mind, the next step is to look into openings and check the requirements. Some positions require specific qualifications, and you may need to do some training or sign up for a course. In other cases, you may just need experience.
You can opt to enroll in one of many online degrees and courses being offered online, so you’ll be able to learn while at home.
Preparing Yourself For A New Career
Before you start sending off applications, it’s wise to make sure you’re prepared. Make sure you have gotten an online CRB check if your new job requires it.
Have you updated your resume recently?
If you haven’t, you may need to look into formatting your resume correctly as you update it, just to make sure you’re sending off the right vibes. If you haven’t, you’ll need to adjust it to make sure it’s up to date and to ensure it paints you in the best light for potential jobs in a new industry.
When you’ve fine-tuned your resume, start searching for openings.
Do Your Research
There are lots of different ways you can find information about jobs.
You could register with recruitment agencies, look in newspapers, and take a trip to local job centers. The Internet is a handy resource. You can tailor your job search to look for everything from internships in fashion to jobs in recruitment, banking, teaching, or the law. The sky is the limit.
If you have a specific role in mind, join the mailing lists for websites that specialize in that industry. If you’re looking to find a software engineering job, leverage your skills in programming and computer know-how. Asides from being highly valued in today’s technology-driven economy, the career is also highly lucrative in the long-run.
If you’re looking for pharmacy jobs, for example, it’s wise to register with health recruitment agencies. When you look at adverts, take the time to read the details carefully. Pay particular attention to the job specifications and the description. Make sure the day to day duties and tasks appeal to you before you send in your resume.
If you’ve been asked to answer questions on job applications, make sure you have the job description handy. This will help you to make your answers relevant. Remember to avoid rambling and waffling, as employers only spend a very short time reviewing applications. You don’t want to annoy them. And don’t forget to sell yourself and highlight your strengths. Show how passionate you are about the role and try and make your applications stand out. There may be hundreds of other candidates, so you’ve got to shine.
Conclusion
There’s a whole world of opportunities out there, and one of them could be perfect for you. Changing careers can be a daunting prospect, but it’s a risk that could pay off. If you love your job, you’re likely to be much happier!
Krystle Cook – the creator of Home Jobs by MOM – put her psychology degree on a shelf and dived into a pile of diapers and dishes instead. She is a wife and mother to two rambunctious boys, sweating it out in her Texas hometown. She loves cooking, DIY home projects, and family fun activities.
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Very helpful post, I’ve read some, will come back to this for reference in future.
I hope it helps you! Thank you for visiting 🙂
Hello Krystle, my name is Tim. I really like this article. Almost ever point you made were part of my reasoning to go into business for myself. I was not so much that I hated my job, it was everything else.
I’m so glad you could connect with my thoughts here, Tim. Congrats on going into business for yourself!