Signs You Should Quit Your Job Now

Quitting a job sounds like a drastic move, but it doesn’t have to be. There could be any number of reasons to resign from a position. Most people feel prevented from leaving a job because of factors like needing a stream of income or an uncertainty of the job market, but are those reasons to stay? If those are keeping you at your job, how much good are you doing for yourself, your family and your employer? Don’t get me wrong, you may still be great at your job, but you should be at your best.

Work should be a motivator, adding value to your life, not draining you. Everyone has had a bad day at work, but what happens when that bad day turns into a bad week or month? There may come a time when you are not engaged with your work. Then what? One of the greatest feelings is to know that no one is forcing you to do your job. You almost always have the autonomy to leave, and here are 6 signs you should quit your job now.

You Are Not Learning

One of the greatest benefits to work is the opportunity to continuously learn and develop. Learning takes place in a variety of ways in the workplace, both formally and informally. Regardless of how learning is labeled, organizations should strive to provide opportunities and employees should be encouraged to seize those chances.

If you find yourself in a situation where you are no longer learning-gaining skills or knowledge-consider your options. There is almost always something to learn, but the longer you are in a job or with an organization, you may have to get creative in seeking out those opportunities.

On the other hand, if the organization you work in is stifling your growth and learning, that is a clear indicator to move on.

You Do Not Feel Challenged

People can be engaged at work in a lot of different settings, and one of the best ways is to stay challenged in the work they do. Like learning, being able to take on tasks, assignments and projects of increasing skill and responsibility helps employees stretch and grow. Many bosses will help facilitate this type of growth, but that motivation does not always have to come from a supervisor.

For instance, once you have mastered some aspects of your job, the challenge may become making internal improvements. Finding your stretch goal may mean challenging yourself internally.

You Do Not Agree with the Company’s Values

A company’s values should guide everything it does. People are no different. If you do not know your employer’s core values, find out what they are. If you have not given much thought to your personal core values, this is a great opportunity to reflect upon what truly matters to you.

Once you know what those values are, to be truly effective in your job you must ensure that you can support and abide by your employer’s values. If your organization’s values conflict with your personal values set, you will have an ethical dilemma on your hands and eventually be conflicted and unhappy. It is difficult to give maximum effort when you only believe in part of what you are doing.

You Are Not Excited About Serving Your Stakeholders

True leadership is about serving others and organizations need leaders throughout their ranks. No matter where you stand in an organization, from top to bottom, everyone has stakeholders. They may be customers, suppliers, shareholders, bosses, subordinates, management, co-workers, just to name a few. If you do not get excited about serving your stakeholders, something is wrong.

You may not appreciate them or they may not appreciate you, but either way you should be passionate about serving those constituents. If you do not get pleasure from serving your stakeholders, you should probably do yourself a favor and find something or somewhere that gets you amped.

Your Work is Not Valued

There is an old saying that holds up through time, “People don’t leave organizations; people leave people.” Another variation is “People leave managers.” If you give your job the attention it deserves, you should feel valued.

You should know that your work is important, and when that is not the case, it may be a good time to leave those people and find people that will appreciate your talents.

You Dread Going to Work

This is kind of an umbrella provision under which all the previous examples sit. We can spend a huge chunk of our lives working. There is no good reason to spend it doing a job you dread going to. You should be excited about the work you are doing. This doesn’t necessarily mean you should live to work, but a great job can be so satisfying.

If you absolutely dread going to work, do yourself a favor and don’t do it. You may find that you have more energy, better health, improved relationships and you can use your newly free time to find a job that excites you.

Remember, your job should be fun, exciting and add value to your life. If, over time, you find that your work falls into any of these 6 categories, it may be a clear sign that you should quit your job and move on to an employer where you are energized about the work you do and valued by the organization.