Original Spanish version published in El Comercio newspaper (Peru) on March 18, 2018
Twenty-one percent of the 2,499 Peruvian professionals and executives who answered the last Lee Hecht Harrison DBM Peru employability survey reported that they were dissatisfied with their jobs. What is troubling about this is that they are very probably working without any enthusiasm, much less with a passion to achieve expected goals or results.
Having accompanied thousands of executives and professionals during their career analysis processes, I can identify certain internal signs that indicate it may be time to seriously think about changing jobs and choosing to be loyal to oneself. Though this may seem rather difficult to achieve, staying at a job where we are unhappy is a dead-end street that brings nothing positive and, instead, has a negative impact on our performance, employability level, reputation, and personal brand. Let’s examine some of the signs to keep a look out for.
You are bored –you have no challenges to overcome or mountains to climb, and you have no new projects to develop. You feel you are not growing –you are not learning and you are not developing new skills. You have little intellectual stimulus.
You sense that the future does not hold greater responsibilities. Instead, you see that you are condemned to doing the same thing indefinitely.
You do not like the work environment –it is neither pleasant nor positive. Your bosses or colleagues are not friendly. You feel isolated.
Responsibilities are overwhelming or even potentially dangerous, with legal or judicial consequences. You are under too much stress; your workload is too heavy; or you work for excessively long hours.
You have a bad relationship with your boss, with whom there is no chemistry or, even worse, which you no longer respect. You do not feel recognized or valued by this boss or the organization in general.
You are paid little or less than others for doing the same job and see no signs of improvement in the short- or medium-term.
You feel that you are not contributing anything of value, or that nobody values your contributions.
You work in an organization that does not invest in people or in technology or, worse yet, where people and values are not respected, and there is no change in sight.
You do not like what you do, you do not like the company, or you are not driven by the mission. You feel disenchanted, disappointed with your assignment, your position, your boss, or the company.
Clearly, the idea is to find a new job that is in keeping with our growth and development expectations, a job that we like doing, that we enjoy, and that we can do well. And we must not stop until we find it, though it may take a while. The challenge is to step out into the job market, and, if possible and ethical, stay at our old job until we find a new one. For this to work, it is vital that we commit to fulfilling the goals and objectives we are paid to achieve, and do so with the utmost respect for our current employer, our commitments, and the assignments we have accepted. Not only is this important for the obvious reasons of ethical and professional correctness, but also because our future references and recommendations depend on it.
Yes, you deserve to give yourself the chance to find a job that arouses your enthusiasm and passion!
