It broke me 3 years ago. Many co-workers were amazed by how long it took me to break. The culture is getting worse, not better. I’m starting to think my only option is to plan an exit, which is one more thing to add to the pile.
Everyone I’ve ever seen leave my company has become so much happier. A few even went through total transformations and lost 100+lbs.
I’m just always worried about putting myself in a bad spot financially, but I’m not factoring in the price I’m paying with my physical and mental health.
There’s always a certain element of risk in changing employers, especially if you’ve been where you are for awhile and have a lot of stability. Plus you’ll probably lose some acquired benefits like additional annual vacation time if you’re in the US. But if you’re diligent in researching the companies you interview with, and you’re pretty sure that you’re capable of performing the duties of the new job, then I think it’s worth the risk. It usually works out. There are exceptions where it ends up being the wrong move, but you can improve your chances by making wise choices along the path to a new offer instead of just jumping on whatever falls in your lap first. I get the fear, I had a lot of it myself. But changing jobs was the best move I’ve made in years! I ended up making more money, with fewer responsibilities, and a more prestigious position. You can probably do it too if you make it a goal and approach it methodically.
Best of luck to you! I really hope you’re able to make some change to reduce the stress, even if those changes are just a change in arraignment with your current employer. Stress is the number one silent killer in modern society. It causes so many different health conditions that it’s easy to overlook that the cause is stress. In my last job I developed insomnia, lost a bunch of weight, my memory went to shit, and my blood pressure was always high. All of those symptoms went away within a few weeks of getting my current job.
Thanks. The insomnia is killing me right now. That’s one of the worst parts. I started talking to a therapist a year and a half ago thinking that might help, but so far it’s done nothing.
I have pretty bad imposter syndrome, which always makes it hard for me to look for jobs. A few years back my boss had me review a job posting for a job I had done in the past, excelled at, got promoted out of, set process for, hired people for, and built a whole training process for, and built tooling and automation to make the job easier…. Reading the job description, I wouldn’t have applied and would have felt it was beyond me, lol
I’m pretty well compensated and have some golden handcuffs, so I’m expecting a jump will lead to a significant pay cut. I had head hunters and former co-workers reach out in the past and the offers are always a big step down. I probably need to accept that’s going to happen in the name of actually having a life worth living, because right I don’t have much of a reason to wake up in the morning. My dad took a 50% pay cut to move jobs once when he was really unhappy. Maybe I should talk it over with him to get some perspective.
You don’t necessarily have to take a pay cut to take a new job. You won’t know until you try. You’re not obligated to accept jobs you’re offered, so you really have nothing to lose by looking. Start interviewing for a few positions you’re qualified for and a few that you think are out of your league. You can probably move up instead of down, if you can stuff the imposter syndrome down long enough to apply and interview. Good luck!
Change it before it breaks you.
It broke me 3 years ago. Many co-workers were amazed by how long it took me to break. The culture is getting worse, not better. I’m starting to think my only option is to plan an exit, which is one more thing to add to the pile.
I had to find a new job when my last job pushed me to a breaking point. It was worth it despite how difficult professional change can be.
Everyone I’ve ever seen leave my company has become so much happier. A few even went through total transformations and lost 100+lbs.
I’m just always worried about putting myself in a bad spot financially, but I’m not factoring in the price I’m paying with my physical and mental health.
There’s always a certain element of risk in changing employers, especially if you’ve been where you are for awhile and have a lot of stability. Plus you’ll probably lose some acquired benefits like additional annual vacation time if you’re in the US. But if you’re diligent in researching the companies you interview with, and you’re pretty sure that you’re capable of performing the duties of the new job, then I think it’s worth the risk. It usually works out. There are exceptions where it ends up being the wrong move, but you can improve your chances by making wise choices along the path to a new offer instead of just jumping on whatever falls in your lap first. I get the fear, I had a lot of it myself. But changing jobs was the best move I’ve made in years! I ended up making more money, with fewer responsibilities, and a more prestigious position. You can probably do it too if you make it a goal and approach it methodically.
Best of luck to you! I really hope you’re able to make some change to reduce the stress, even if those changes are just a change in arraignment with your current employer. Stress is the number one silent killer in modern society. It causes so many different health conditions that it’s easy to overlook that the cause is stress. In my last job I developed insomnia, lost a bunch of weight, my memory went to shit, and my blood pressure was always high. All of those symptoms went away within a few weeks of getting my current job.
Thanks. The insomnia is killing me right now. That’s one of the worst parts. I started talking to a therapist a year and a half ago thinking that might help, but so far it’s done nothing.
I have pretty bad imposter syndrome, which always makes it hard for me to look for jobs. A few years back my boss had me review a job posting for a job I had done in the past, excelled at, got promoted out of, set process for, hired people for, and built a whole training process for, and built tooling and automation to make the job easier…. Reading the job description, I wouldn’t have applied and would have felt it was beyond me, lol
I’m pretty well compensated and have some golden handcuffs, so I’m expecting a jump will lead to a significant pay cut. I had head hunters and former co-workers reach out in the past and the offers are always a big step down. I probably need to accept that’s going to happen in the name of actually having a life worth living, because right I don’t have much of a reason to wake up in the morning. My dad took a 50% pay cut to move jobs once when he was really unhappy. Maybe I should talk it over with him to get some perspective.
You don’t necessarily have to take a pay cut to take a new job. You won’t know until you try. You’re not obligated to accept jobs you’re offered, so you really have nothing to lose by looking. Start interviewing for a few positions you’re qualified for and a few that you think are out of your league. You can probably move up instead of down, if you can stuff the imposter syndrome down long enough to apply and interview. Good luck!
I’ve tried a couple times in the past and looked around. Maybe not, but I think I need to be prepared for the possibly.
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